Chris Horsman
Encyclopedia
Chris Horsman is a former Wales international rugby union
player.
in Chippenham
, Wiltshire
and represented England
at youth international level.
Horsman started his club career at Bath
in 1997 before joining Bridgend in 2002. With the advent of regional rugby in Wales
, Horsman was called up to the Celtic Warriors
regional side, but when the club was disbanded due to financial difficulties in 2004 he was forced to seek another club.
Horsman signed for Worcester in July 2004 and established himself as one of the best props in the English game. He signed a contract extension at the beginning of 2006 to keep him at Sixways
until the summer of 2010 but in July 2009 he announced his retirement after a series of injuries. He later announced his intentions to begin training as a referee.
, but two separate bouts with cancer prevented him from playing for England. However, he later chose play for Wales
as he qualified through the three year international residency rule.
Horsman made his full Welsh debut on 11 November 2005 against Fiji
at the Millennium Stadium
. He scored his first and only try against England at Twickenham and he was selected for the Wales squad for the 2007 Rugby World Cup. He attained 14 international caps for Wales in total.
, which was successfully treated at the Royal Marsden hospital in Sutton, London
; only for him to later succumb to a strain of lymphatic cancer. Fortunately, this second occurrence of the disease was also nullified and Horsman returned to rugby.
Rugby union
Rugby union, often simply referred to as rugby, is a full contact team sport which originated in England in the early 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand...
player.
Club career
Horsman attended Sheldon schoolSheldon school
Sheldon School is a large mixed comprehensive school in Chippenham, Wiltshire, UK for children aged 11–18 and is the largest school in Wiltshire. It is one of three in Chippenham, the others being Abbeyfield and Hardenhuish...
in Chippenham
Chippenham
Chippenham may be:* Chippenham, Wiltshire* Chippenham * Chippenham, Cambridgeshire-See also:* Virginia State Route 150, also known as Chippenham Parkway, USA* Cippenham, Berkshire, UK...
, Wiltshire
Wiltshire
Wiltshire is a ceremonial county in South West England. It is landlocked and borders the counties of Dorset, Somerset, Hampshire, Gloucestershire, Oxfordshire and Berkshire. It contains the unitary authority of Swindon and covers...
and represented England
England national rugby union team
The England national rugby union team represents England in rugby union. They compete in the annual Six Nations Championship with France, Ireland, Scotland, Italy, and Wales. They have won this championship on 26 occasions, 12 times winning the Grand Slam, making them the most successful team in...
at youth international level.
Horsman started his club career at Bath
Bath Rugby
Bath Rugby is an English professional rugby union club that is based in the city of Bath. They play in the Aviva Premiership league...
in 1997 before joining Bridgend in 2002. With the advent of regional rugby in Wales
Wales
Wales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom and the island of Great Britain, bordered by England to its east and the Atlantic Ocean and Irish Sea to its west. It has a population of three million, and a total area of 20,779 km²...
, Horsman was called up to the Celtic Warriors
Celtic Warriors
The Celtic Warriors were a regional rugby union team from Wales, who played in the Celtic League and Heineken Cup between 2003 and 2004.-History:The Warriors were one of the five original regions of the Welsh Regional Rugby Era...
regional side, but when the club was disbanded due to financial difficulties in 2004 he was forced to seek another club.
Horsman signed for Worcester in July 2004 and established himself as one of the best props in the English game. He signed a contract extension at the beginning of 2006 to keep him at Sixways
Sixways Stadium
Sixways Stadium is a stadium in Worcester, England. It is currently used mostly for rugby union matches and is the home stadium of Worcester Rugby Football Club. The stadium is able to hold 12,068. It opened in 1975 and is located off junction 6 of the M5 motorway, hence the name Sixways.An...
until the summer of 2010 but in July 2009 he announced his retirement after a series of injuries. He later announced his intentions to begin training as a referee.
International career
He was offered a place in the England national rugby union teamEngland national rugby union team
The England national rugby union team represents England in rugby union. They compete in the annual Six Nations Championship with France, Ireland, Scotland, Italy, and Wales. They have won this championship on 26 occasions, 12 times winning the Grand Slam, making them the most successful team in...
, but two separate bouts with cancer prevented him from playing for England. However, he later chose play for Wales
Wales national rugby union team
The Wales national rugby union team represent Wales in international rugby union tournaments. They compete annually in the Six Nations Championship with England, France, Ireland, Italy and Scotland. Wales have won the Six Nations and its predecessors 24 times outright, second only to England with...
as he qualified through the three year international residency rule.
Horsman made his full Welsh debut on 11 November 2005 against Fiji
Fiji national rugby union team
The Fiji national rugby union team is a member of the Pacific Islands Rugby Alliance formerly along with Samoa and Tonga. In 2009, Samoa announced their departure from the Pacific Islands Rugby Alliance, leaving just Fiji and Tonga. Fiji are ranked sixteenth in the world by the IRB as of 26...
at the Millennium Stadium
Millennium Stadium
The Millennium Stadium is the national stadium of Wales, located in the capital, Cardiff. It is the home of the Wales national rugby union team and also frequently stages games of the Wales national football team, but is also host to many other large scale events, such as the Super Special Stage...
. He scored his first and only try against England at Twickenham and he was selected for the Wales squad for the 2007 Rugby World Cup. He attained 14 international caps for Wales in total.
Personal life
In 1997, Horsman was diagnosed with testicular cancerTesticular cancer
Testicular cancer is cancer that develops in the testicles, a part of the male reproductive system.In the United States, between 7,500 and 8,000 diagnoses of testicular cancer are made each year. In the UK, approximately 2,000 men are diagnosed each year. Over his lifetime, a man's risk of...
, which was successfully treated at the Royal Marsden hospital in Sutton, London
Sutton, London
Sutton is a large suburban town in southwest London, England, and the administrative headquarters of the London Borough of Sutton. It is located south-southwest of Charing Cross and is one of the major metropolitan centres identified in the London Plan. The town was connected to central London by...
; only for him to later succumb to a strain of lymphatic cancer. Fortunately, this second occurrence of the disease was also nullified and Horsman returned to rugby.