Gareth Thomas CBE is a Welsh former professional rugby player. He played rugby union as a fullback, wing or centre for Bridgend, Cardiff, the Celtic Warriors, Toulouse, Cardiff Blues, and Wales. In 2010 he changed rugby football codes from rugby union to rugby league when he transferred from Cardiff Blues the Crusaders in the Super League. He retired from rugby in October 2011. Thomas came out as gay in December 2009.
About Gareth Thomas (rugby) in brief
Gareth Thomas CBE is a Welsh former professional rugby player. He played rugby union as a fullback, wing or centre for Bridgend, Cardiff, the Celtic Warriors, Toulouse, Cardiff Blues, and Wales. In 2010 he changed rugby football codes from rugby union to rugby league when he transferred from Cardiff Blues the Crusaders in the Super League, and for Wales. He retired from rugby in October 2011. Thomas came out as gay in December 2009. He was voted the most influential gay person in the UK in The Independent on Sunday Pink List and received Stonewall’s Hero of the Year award. With 100 test match appearances he was the most capped Welsh rugby union player until he was overtaken by Stephen Jones in September 2011. He is currently ranked 13th among international try scorers, and is the second highest Wales try scorer behind Shane Williams. He also won four rugby league caps for Wales, scoring three tries. Thomas was selected for the 2005 British and Irish Lions tour to New Zealand. Following injury to Brian O’Driscoll in the opening minutes of the first test against New Zealand, he was made captain for the second and third tests of the series, becoming the ninth Welsh captain in Lions’ history. In 2005 Thomas was found guilty of assault while playing rugby in France and in 2007 was banned for four weeks for misconduct charges.
A groin injury prematurely ended Thomas’ first rugby league season in 2010, but he was selected in the preliminary Welsh Cup squad for the European Cup. In a European Cup warm-up test before the tournament he made a try-scoring try against Wakefield Trinity in a 20–10 away victory. He scored a Welsh record-equalling four tries in the match against Italy in Treviso in 1999; one of only seven players to achieve that feat. He held the Wales record for the most international tries with 40 until Shane Williams surpassed that total in the 2008 Six Nations Championship. He broke Gareth Llewellyn’s Wales record when he led Wales out against Australia at Telstra Stadium in Sydney on 26 May 2007, a match that Wales lost 29–23 on a Wallabies try after the siren. His 100th, and last test match was in his team’s defeat by Fiji in the 2007 World Cup World Cup. Thomas joined Crusaders’ French side Catalans Dragons on an 18-month deal on 19 March 2010. He made his rugby league début after a heavy challenge from Catalans player David Ferriol, and went on to win the game 14–6 in the game. He then spent a spell at Cardiff starting in 1997 before rejoining hometown club BridGend again in 2001 and captaining them to a Welsh Premier Division title in 2003, in a campaign where they only lost to runners-up Neath and Cardiff away.
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