French legend Sebastien Chabal claims he has no recollection of playing rugby

This week, the former Les Bleus behemoth was a guest on the French show Legend, hosted by media personality Guillaume Pley, where he made shocking revelations about his mental health.

"I have no memory of a single second of a rugby match I played," the 47-year-old told the host.

"And I don't remember a single one of the 62 Marseillaises [the French anthem] I experienced.

"I have a few childhood memories. I think it's because people told me about them. I don't have this memory of past moments.

"When I talk about it at home with my wife, I tell her that I have the impression that it wasn't me who played rugby. And since I always thought I was a bit of an imposter, since I got there a bit by chance. With the fact of not remembering, I have the impression that it wasn't me."

Chabal added that there was little medical science could do to help him.

"Go see a doctor, for what? The memory will not return," he quipped.

Chabal was capped 62 times for France in his 14-year career and was reportedly the highest-paid rugby player in the world while at Racing 92 in 2010.

The issue of head trauma in rugby is not new. Nearly 300 players are currently involved in an ongoing legal battle with the sports' governing bodies, including World Rugby, the Rugby Football Union and the Welsh Rugby Union.

The players are suing for negligence, alleging that these organisations failed to protect them from the risks of repetitive concussive and sub-concussive blows, leading to neurological conditions such as chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE), early-onset dementia and other impairments. The case is still in the pre-trial phase.

World Rugby has expressed sympathy for the players but maintains that any legal action would limit their ability to offer direct support.

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