Steroids, suicide and addiction: Why so many wrestlers die young

Telegraph

a day ago

The death of wrestling superstar Hulk Hogan at 71 has prompted an outpouring of love and respect from fans worldwide. It won't, however, have come as a shock to many. Over a career spanning decades, which included several comebacks from retirement and some very public scandals, Hogan had survived a staggering amount of physical and mental torment.
He had endured surgery for chronic pain and injuries almost all over his body, including multiple back operations such as spinal fusion surgery, knee and hip replacements, and repairs to his shoulders, biceps and abdominal muscles.
In 2023, he claimed he had undergone 25 surgeries in the past decade alone. He spoke of having an eye reconstructed, his nose repeatedly broken, and getting his teeth knocked out six times.
The Georgia-born star even suggested he still had teeth marks in a finger from an opponent's bite early in a career that began in 1977. He suffered from nerve damage, and his knees, he said, were reduced to bone on bone. At times, he had to rely on a walking stick to get around.
But this catalogue of excruciating pain was only part of the battle Hogan faced. At one point, he developed a long-term dependence on painkillers, including opioids, and admitted that he had begun washing down dozens of pills with alcohol. In another moment of crisis, he told Oprah Winfrey that he had become so depressed and desperate he had contemplated suicide.
There's more.
In 1994, testifying under his real name, Terry Gene Bollea, as a witness in a case against his former employer, World Wrestling Entertainment, LLC (WWE) co-founder Vince McMahon, he told the court that he had regularly used anabolic steroids in the 1980s, not just to build his physique but 'to heal injuries, to keep on going,' adding that it was 'fairly common' among wrestlers at the time.(McMahon was acquitted of supplying them.)
The dangerous side effects of excessive steroid use are well known today: high blood pressure, blood clots and heart problems, including an increased risk of heart attack and stroke. Although Hogan's death at the relatively young age of 71 from cardiac arrest has not been directly linked to steroid abuse, the punishment he inflicted on his body over many years places his death within a glaring pattern seen in wrestling, even at the very top of the sport.
Early death is by no means unusual in the world of wrestling. A 2014 US university study found that over a 26-year period, male wrestlers were 15 times more likely to die from cardiovascular-related causes than men in the general population, and 122 times more likely to die from drug overdoses. In 38 per cent of those cases, the deaths were linked to heart problems.
Those statistics sit uncomfortably alongside what wrestling fans have seen happen to their heroes.
James Hellwig, known to World Wrestling Federation (WWF) fans as 'The Ultimate Warrior' before the organisation became WWE after losing the acronym to the World Wide Fund for Nature, died of heart failure at 54 in 2014. He had once defeated Hogan to become WWF champion at WrestleMania VI.
Rowdy Roddy Piper, the kilt-wearing 'Hot Rod,' died a year later at 61 from cardiac arrest.
Ten years earlier, former WWE champion Eddie Guerrero died at just 38 from heart failure.
Lancashire-born Davey Boy Smith, known as the ' British Bulldog ', died in 2002 of a heart attack.
Rick Rude, or 'Ravishing' Rick Rude as fans knew him, died in 1999 at the age of 40 from heart failure after a suspected accidental overdose.
Hogan often lamented the loss of his former ring partner, Randy 'Macho Man' Savage, with whom he shared a spectacular partnership in the ring as the 'Mega Powers' and a rather more complicated relationship outside it. Hogan was said to have had a relationship with Savage's ex-wife, which caused a temporary rift between them. Savage died in 2011 at the age of 58. His autopsy revealed an enlarged heart and severe fatty build-up in his coronary arteries that resulted in more than 90 per cent blockage.
'When you expose yourself over a long period of time to anabolic steroids,' says Dr Sam Botchey, a consultant in sport, exercise and musculoskeletal medicine, 'you get an increase in the size of your heart, particularly the left ventricle, which actually makes the heart less functional. It impairs your heart's ability to pump blood around the body properly and also increases the risk of arrhythmias, or irregular heartbeats, which can lead to premature cardiac arrest and coronary disease.'
Deaths related to medication have also been a major problem. In 2003, WWF/WWE star 'Crash Holly' died from what was ruled a suicide, after taking an overdose of a prescription drug used for musculoskeletal pain along with alcohol, following the receipt of divorce papers. He was just 32.
Former WWE wrestler Eddie Fatu, better known as 'Umaga', died of heart failure in 2009 at the age of 36 after an overdose of painkillers and anti-anxiety medication.
A cocaine overdose led to the death of Curt Hennig, known as 'Mr Perfect', at 44.
Mike Awesome died by suicide in 2007, at the age of 42.
Clearly, mental health issues are a significant factor in the sport.
Added to all of this is the increased risk of serious injury in any high-impact sport, with concussion being a particular concern in wrestling. Former WWF/WWE wrestler Marty Jannetty was involved in a class-action suit against his former employers in 2016.
His testimony reportedly included the statement: 'We do get slammed on the floor and our heads bounced on the floor. There have been so many times when I get up and didn't remember how I finished the match.' The case was later dismissed.
The death of Joanie Laurer, known as WWF's 'Chyna', from a drug overdose in 2016 was tentatively linked to CTE, or chronic traumatic encephalopathy, a concussion-related injury.
One star who managed to leave the sport before it caused him permanent injury was Dwayne 'The Rock' Johnson. At the height of his wrestling fame, The Rock was able to leverage his ring persona and imposing physique into a film career, starting with The Mummy Returns in 2001.
His starring role in the Fast & Furious franchise has been central to making it one of the most successful of its era. His path has since been followed by others, including John Cena and Dave Bautista, who has appeared in many blockbusters and gave a notably subtle performance in the low-key Pamela Anderson indie The Last Showgirl last year.
Botchey says that wrestlers face a perfect storm that starts with the dangers of using anabolic steroids in a business that demands a certain type of physique, compounded by the risks of CTE and muscle injuries.
'Then you add in the painkillers, and what we're seeing here is a pattern of injury where they still have to perform. These are some of the best athletes you'll ever see,' he notes, 'who are also actors and performers putting on a show.'
'So despite having torn bicep muscles and severe cartilage injuries, they're still having to go out there and do that same performance, which is why you get this high use of painkillers.'
The opioid crisis, he adds, hit wrestlers just as hard as it affected everyone else. 'You see this pattern of young, fit men who stay in wrestling for long periods of time and become exposed to that perfect storm of multiple head injuries, steroid use, painkillers and opioid overuse.'
He believes there are steps that could help, such as enforcing head injury protocols similar to those used in rugby and football, and tackling the overuse of painkillers as early as possible. 'Regular monitoring for anabolic steroid use and hormonal imbalance would also be key,' he suggests.
But he also recognises the powerful pull this multimillion dollar industry has on individuals. Botchey's specialty is steroid use, and he sounds a note of warning about how widespread it is within gym culture here in the UK. Perhaps, in what is happening to wrestlers, there is a broader lesson to be learnt about problems closer to home.