“My body and my head said stop.
This is how Antoine Burban explains his decision in an interview with Midi Olympique.
After 257 games with the Stade Français and 4 selections with the XV of France, the third line announced on Monday that he was retiring at the age of 34.
Farewells with Paris which will take place on the evening of the match against Brive during the final day of Top 14, Sunday June 5.
A difficult decision to make for Antoine Burban.
“Throughout the first half of the season, I wanted to continue for another year,” he says.
But his injuries and wear and tear got the better of him.
After having undergone numerous knee operations in recent years and 18 months of interruption, the third line of the Stade Français made his decision on March 26, after the match against Union Bordeaux Bègles, marked by insistent back pain.
“I took that as a message from my body,” he describes.
Retraining as a sports agent
The player will not leave the world of rugby for all that: he is preparing for the competition to become a sports agent.
“What interests me is the human aspect of this profession.
We sometimes get a false image of the men who practice this profession.
“, he specifies.
More important to him, Burban wants to enjoy his family and return to a more mundane life.
"I'm going to go back to sailing, to be able to play football, tennis, basketball with my friends", explains the third row.
Winner of the Shield of Brennus in 2007 and 2015, Antoine Burban began his career at the Paris University Club before leaving for the Stade Français in 2006. During the coronation in 2015, the third line played a central role in the conquest of the title.
At the international level, Philippe Saint-André and Guy Novès allowed him to participate in two editions of the Six Nations Tournament with the Blues.
