Fresh off a beefcake media blitz, rugby player Ben Cohen is ready to return to the game: “…standing on a chilly touchline at Richmond’s Athletic Ground, is an older if not noticeably wiser athlete who sees no reason why he cannot regain the England jersey he last wore over a year ago.”
The Guardian points out that he’s got a fanbase that isn’t necessarily attracted to him for his athletic abilities: “Cohen does not enjoy the uncritical adoration of everyone within the macho world of English rugby but admirers of his physique are unfazed by the summer fall-out at Northampton which caused him to leave the club he joined as a 16-year-old. Nor, on a recent promotional visit to Prowler, a specialist gay outlet in Soho, did anyone query his decision to reject England’s call in the build-up to the World Cup. Or ask whether flogging topless calendars for his testimonial year is not a slight come-down for a 29-year-old World Cup winner who should still have plenty to give his chosen sport.”
Cohen remains coolly unfazed by those who might criticize the courting of his gay fans: “Some people are really homophobic but my auntie’s a lesbian and it really doesn’t bother me. We’re in the 21st century. They’re happy and that’s what it’s all about. You’re only on this earth once, you only get one shot at it.”
Previously
British Rugby Stud Ben Cohen Planning a Gay Night in London [tr]
Ben Cohen Strips Down for Men’s Health [tr]
Ben Cohen Gives Good Face
