Ive been following his Instagram account for the past couple of years and have been really impressed with how he handles himself and the relationships he has with the people around him.
He comes across as an evolved human being. A fit human being. And an intelligent human being.
Personally, I think he could slot back into the rhythm of rugby within a few months.
He's a really professional athlete right now...and I reckon he would be a superb influence on the players around him.
The Article...
‘My experiences have made me grow as an athlete and as a man in ways I couldn’t have imagined’
Christian Wade strides across the lobby of the Holiday Inn in High Wycombe with the instantly recognisable, easy gait of the supreme athlete who terrorised opposition defences during a glittering career with Wasps in which he frequently rewrote the tryscoring record books.
Wade, 31 today, flew back into Britain last week for a month’s visit with his New York-born wife to celebrate his birthday, ruminate about his future and meet up with family and friends he has barely seen for three years while he pursued his dream to make it in American football.
In an accent that now sits somewhere between Buckinghamshire and Buffalo, Wade says that being released by the Bills last month largely because of injury, doesn’t mean it’s the end of his sporting story. Far from it.
“I haven’t hung up my boots,” he insists. “I still aspire to play top-level sport, whether it is in the NFL or rugby. If a team wanted to hit me up I would entertain the conversation because I would be interested to see what value I could bring to them. I am here, open to whatever. I am not restrained or restricted by anything. My life has been about trying to push the boundaries and set the bar as high as possible.”
Now fully fit and training five times a week, he is a free agent in the NFL and could well be picked up over the summer for next season such was the impact he made as a running back. His 65-yard touchdown run in his first pre-season game for the Bills against the Indianapolis Colts was sensational in any environment but for a rookie it was unbelievable.
But he is also considering a return to the sport in which he made his name, whether that is here, in France, the southern hemisphere, Japan or even in the fledgling US rugby championship (MLR) which will have been bolstered by the award this week of the 2031 World Cup to the United States. The attraction of the Premiership is bettering Chris Ashton’s tryscoring record of 95. Wade has 82.
First, he speaks about England, for whom he made only one appearance in 2013 against Argentina before being called up by the British & Irish Lions in Australia. It was the season in which he was named both the Players’ Player of the Year and the Young Player of the Year, his unorthodoxy, speed and off-the-cuff brilliance thrilling crowds in the Premiership. The world seemed to be at his twinkling feet. But injury stalled his advance. However, his hat-trick for England against a strong Barbarians side in May 2015 appeared to signal his return.
“I scored three tries but after the game none of the coaches came to speak to me about my performance, what the next step could be. In my mind I saw that game as making a bid for the World Cup squad.
“I didn’t hear anything. Then I got a call about two or three weeks later from Stuart Lancaster [the head coach at the time]. I didn’t even pick up. I wasn’t interested. He left a voicemail in which he said, ‘Yeah good game, good tries, but we are going to go with another guy [Semesa Rokoduguni] because you’ve had your opportunity and we want to see how he goes.’
“I knew that was it. England would never call me again.” Did that hurt? “No, not really. The one thing I rest my hat on is the respect of my peers. Recognition didn’t come with England, which is fine. But we are all groomed to play for England, that’s the Holy Grail. When it doesn’t happen you feel unfulfilled. What are you left playing rugby for?”
It was the trigger for his dramatic change of heart and set in train a process that resulted in him leaving Wasps, his only club, in 2018 and bidding to join the NFL via the International Player Pathway (IPP) scheme after which he was signed by the Bills as part of the practice squad.
Although he never made the regular roster, with injury and Covid intervening, he achieved far more than any other rugby union convert in rising to the difficult challenge of switching to a sport in which the playbook every player has to learn during all-day team meetings is as thick as an old telephone directory.
NFL regulations at the time meant an IPP player couldn’t be promoted to the regular squad, even in an emergency. In his second year Covid meant there were no camps or pre-season so he didn’t have the opportunity to show what he had learnt. At the start of his third year he tore shoulder ligaments in training just before the all-important pre-season games. Although he has recovered, the Bills could not justify keeping him on.
But he has no regrets. “It’s not always about what happens on the field that determines success. The lessons I’ve learnt, the people I’ve met, the experiences I’ve had, it’s all unmatched. You can’t compare it. It has pushed me to grow as an athlete and as a man in ways I couldn’t have imagined.”
So what’s the main differences between the US and the UK?
“Bigger cars, the lanes are bigger, parking spaces are bigger,” he says, laughing. “Everything is just bigger in terms of the lifestyle entertainment. They make a bigger deal of everything, which I celebrate. They celebrate life in a bigger way.
“What I have really noticed is that we don’t celebrate our athletes enough here in England. The media tries to determine what is success for our athletes. That’s wrong. No one can determine what success is for me because I determine that. When people say, ‘His American dream has ended,’ I say, ‘What do you mean? I’ve been there for 3½ years.’
“In America they celebrate athletes in a way that it generates more positivity. Sport is part of the entertainment industry. Athletes are supposed to have personalities. We are creative human beings. Why try to dumb us down? That doesn’t make sense. By doing that you stunt performances.”
In that context Danny Cipriani immediately comes to mind. The two are “really close” even though they overlapped at Wasps for only a year. “Although he is older than me I am kind of like his older brother at times. I check in with him, sometimes have to tell him about certain things he’s doing. He will listen and we will continue to move forward and make changes. Nobody is perfect. I like being a mentor for people.”
A love of music led him to meet Lisa, whom he married last October in Manhattan. She is a former contender on America’s Next Top Model and has also been a television presenter. They met when Wade was visiting a record producer friend of his in Los Angeles. Their relationship made Wade’s career transition much easier. And music is where he probably sees his future. He is an accomplished drummer, his brother, Adam, is one of Britain’s best and has just finished touring with Craig David. Last night he was performing at Eurovision.
Wade recently started a company called the NextGen Collective. “It is all about providing a platform for artists, musicians and creatives to showcase their gifts and talent. We are launching here in July. It’s all very exciting.”
So how will he look back on his career when time is eventually called. “When I am 60 I can look back and people might say, ‘One-cap wonder Wade. ‘But I say, ‘Oh no. Wasps, England, British & Irish Lions, NFL.’ My sporting career to this date has been pretty successful.”
And who’s to say it’s over yet?
Always a Wasp