Commonwealth Games judo gold medallist and Royal Marine Chris Sherrington revealed yesterday that the tough, disciplined sport helped save him from alcoholism.
The 30-year-old Scot said he spent £8,500 on drink in just three months after going “off the rails” following a tour of duty in Iraq nine years ago.
“They fixed me six times. How many times can you break yourself? I broke myself rather crazily,” Sherrington, who claimed gold in the +100kg division, told the BBC.
“I came back from Iraq and I had a bit of stress and I tried to vent it through sport. At first, it didn’t work,” he recalled.
“Then I remembered that I did judo as a kid. I didn’t particularly like it and wasn’t very good at it, but I remembered how tough it was.
"So I threw myself into it and put all my frustration into it. Within 12 months, I was third in Britain and 12 months after that I was number one.”
Sherrington, who will now head back to the military after being given leave to train for the Games, said he wasn’t certain whether or not he was suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder.
“I did go a little bit off the rails. My mum and dad were very worried about me,” he added. “At the time, I just thought I was normal, but I was very open to suggestion and a little bit volatile as well. We got through it—and that’s the magic of judo. There are people all over the world with problems and issues and this cures them.”
