Nigel Owens reveals he wanted to be chemically castrated when he was 25
The first ever openly gay referee has previously opened up about struggling with his sexuality
By Steve Brown
Nigel Owens has revealed he wanted to be chemically castrated when he was 25.
The first ever openly gay rugby referee has opened up in the past about his struggles with mental health when coming to terms with his sexuality and has also revealed he was bulimic.
But now, in a candid interview with TALKSport, the referee revealed he told a doctor that he wanted to be chemically castrated because he didn’t want to be gay.
He said: “At 25, not wanting to be this person, I’d read somewhere that you could get chemically castrated and if you got chemically castrated, it would get rid of any sexual urges you had.
“I went to the doctor and said, ‘Look I think I’m gay and I don’t want to be gay. I want to be chemically castrated.’
“The doctor said, ‘It doesn’t work like that’ and I left there in a worst state then I went in there.
“Things were very different 23 years ago than they are now. I thought there was only one way out.
“I couldn’t have people finding out, what would my mum and dad say, what would my family and friends say if they found out that I was different to them?
“I did something one night that I will regret for the rest of my life.”