England is in the midst of a renaissance.
With only seven players with more than 30 caps in his starting XV to face France in the final match of the 2024 Six Nations, England manager Steve Borthwick has given his country an almost historic makeover.
Northampton Saints winger Tommy Freeman is part of this resurrection, and has already been valuable since the start of the Tournament.
Powerful and fast, the man who only had four caps before the competition shone from the first meeting, against Italy.
The last passer on the first English try, scored by Elliot Daly, Tommy Freeman could have opened his counter for the selection at the very start of the second half but his little kick for himself finally slipped into touch five meters from the goal. Italian in-goal.
It's probably only a postponement, as the winger is so threatening during each meeting.
“My lips had turned blue”
But just seeing Tommy Freeman dressed in white and with a rose on his heart is a victory.
Diagnosed with epilepsy at the age of 13, the Northampton player is under medication and warns the paramedics present during each match.
Victim of a violent seizure at the age of 19, after he had stopped his treatment three years ago, the Englishman was transported to hospital.
“We were out for a school reunion, for a long night at Christmas, there was alcohol and a lack of sleep,” he told the English media I. “The next day, I had absences , I called my mother and she told me to come home safely.
About 20 minutes after getting home, bang, I had a full blown seizure.
I couldn't breathe anymore.
My mother was lying next to me, my father was there.
They said my lips had turned blue.
I woke up what seemed like 30 seconds later, but it had been a few minutes and was taken by ambulance to the hospital.
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His treatment then resumed.
Since then, Tommy Freeman has not suffered any more seizures, but he still remains attentive.
“As a precaution, I will not go swimming alone, I like there to be someone around me and I would not entrust this responsibility to a stranger,” he explains.
The same goes for baths, I won't take one if my girlfriend isn't in the room.
» He also had to wait two years to return to driving, this being prohibited during the first year of treatment.
Also read “He’s going to smash everyone”: why Georges-Henri Colombe is finally blooming with the Blues
“Sport does not promote seizures”
His illness probably won't go away.
Put to sleep thanks to medication, it does not cure in the majority of patients.
“It is estimated that in two thirds of cases, drug treatment is effective in preventing seizures,” explains Stanislas Lagarde, epileptologist at the University Hospitals of Marseille.
We then consider that it is in remission, which means that if we stop the treatment, the attacks can return later, the disease does not disappear.
Only certain forms of epilepsy can be cured with age.
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However, neither the illness nor the treatment stopped him from playing rugby at a high level.
“I don’t see it as a weakness, I would say it’s my superpower now,” he believes.
Especially since rugby is absolutely not recommended.
“The only restrictions concern sports where there would be danger in the event of a seizure, such as scuba diving or climbing,” explains the epileptologist.
For the rest, it is not contraindicated.
Doing sport does not promote seizures, it is not aggravating.
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And this, despite the risks of concussion and the strong contacts of rugby.
Duels that Tommy Freeman does not avoid.
Just as solid in defense as he is dynamic in attack, the Englishman could make Damian Penaud suffer on his wing this Saturday evening.
And force France to end this Six Nations Tournament on a bitter note.