Before illness wrecked his career, this guy was an epic All Black - was always a joy to watch in full flight.
Died at 40 from kidney failure.
6'5", 19 stone, and able to run 100m in under 11 seconds...
www.bbc.co.uk/sport/rugby-union/34853536
Some highlights (with crap music!)www.youtube.com/watch?v=OsXTa7UCGlk
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Shock! Far too young!
I didn't know he was ill!
RIP
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At school level rugby we/I faced friends who were fast and well built. One or two others played internationally. But the one I remember could run a mile in less 4.5 minutes but was built like an outhouse. If you had the rugby ball you didn't want to really be tackled.
A real shock about Lomu!
Last edited by: rtj70 on Wed 18 Nov 15 at 01:23
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I didn't know he was that ill; the report said he died suddenly.
He changed the game, the first of the breed of giant, fast backs we see everywhere today. And he made the 1995 World Cup unforgettable, not just by blowing England away in the semi-final but by showing the scale of South Africa's achievement in winning the final. One of the few true sporting greats, like a Bradman or a Pelé in that he's recognized by people who weren't fans of his sport.
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Sad news...
Lomu joke:
England - NZ playing, JL on the pitch. Half time it's about 30-0, all points have been scored by JL. Rest of the ABs decide JL can handle it by himself so they go to the pub, leaving JL to handle the second half by himself. After the match JL makes his way to the pub, and teammates ask how it went - "Not bad - 60-7". How come they scored, what happened they ask? "Got sent off in the last minute" :-)
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>> Before illness wrecked his career,
'Nephrotic syndrome' I read. What's that, something genetic or a side-effect of being so huge and athletic? Any possibility of injury, perhaps at an early age?
All the gods preserve us from kidney ailments. From all ailments indeed, for as long as possible.
Good Lomu joke RichardW.
Last edited by: Armel Coussine on Wed 18 Nov 15 at 17:27
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>> 'Nephrotic syndrome' I read. What's that, something genetic or a side-effect of being so huge
>> and athletic? Any possibility of injury, perhaps at an early age?
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nephrotic_syndrome
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You would so look forward to a second kidney transplant... a prospect that might drive anyone to die before their time.
I couldn't make much sense of the Wiki stuff with its plethora of technicalities. 40 is very young though. Two score years only, poor fellow, sacrificed on the pyre of sport which devours many of the best and most beautiful...
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>> ...poor fellow, sacrificed on the pyre of
>> sport which devours many of the best and most beautiful...
Nice phrasing AC, but I don't think playing rugby had any effect on the outcome on his disease.
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>> I don't think playing rugby had any effect on the outcome on his disease.
I suppose not, but by taking care of himself like an invalid he might easily have lived a longer, if more boring and less exciting, life.
Sport does eat people up. It's so physical. Athletes need devoted, understanding representatives who aren't just concerned with money (or who are really worth their huge percentages as some are). They're like gold dust.
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Think (according to the press) that it was a heart attack that got him in the end, brought on by the stresses induced by his lifelong kidney disease.
From the tributes paid by all and sundry it seems that he was not only a great rugby player but also a wonderful, generous and genuine nice guy. He also leaves a young family. Very sad but his death had nothing to do with the rugby he played. He even said, when someone said how good he was, "Just think how good I would have been if I'd ever trained hard enough to be fully fit"
I especially like the story of just before a game in World Cup 1999 that Clive Woodward tells:-
"The night before that game we had a team meeting and I told the England lads that I wouldn't want a single New Zealander in my team. England were the best and England were going to win. There was a bit of a murmuring and eventually Will Greenwood put his hand up. 'Clive we have had a bit of a word and, er, the consensus is that we would definitely swap Austin Healey for Jonah.'
Sad loss
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We watched Invictus again at the weekend, the Eastwood directed film about the 1995 Rugby World Cup.
Apart from some dodgy South African accents it's well done and very watchable if you want something that doesn't bother the grey matter too much.
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RIP Jonah Lomu - zippy
