Wojciech Szczesny, a mainstay in goal for years at the elite level of European football, publicly admitted that he smokes and that he does not have the strength to quit.
“People know that I have an addiction I cannot get rid of”, he confessed, adding that it is a problem he shares with millions of people around the world.
What is striking is that, far from downplaying it, he was blunt: “I think it is something terrible and everyone should avoid it”. He did not even try to justify himself or make locker-room excuses.
A confession like this, coming from a high-performance athlete, highlights how difficult it is to fight an addiction, even when your body is your work tool.