A heartbroken family have paid tribute to a "kind and gentle" man who excelled at rugby after his death following a battle with alcoholism.
Christian Richards was well-known in Swansea through his achievements in the world of rugby, representing his country at various different age levels, and also playing for the likes of Swansea RFC, Dunvant RFC and Aberavon RFC.
He was sadly found dead on or about March 6, 2021, at Alexander Hotel in Sketty Road aged just 39.
READ MORE: Sudden death of 'lovely, lovely guy' and former Dunvant RFC captain
An inquest held into his passing at Swansea's Guildhall heard how the former Clydach primary and Birchgrove comprehensive school pupil, who also went on to study motor mechanics at Swansea College, was an alcoholic, and had battled with it for some time. He had been warned by doctors that if he continued to drink, it could result in his death.
Mr Richards, who worked as a fitter for Tata Steel, had managed to abstain from drinking since December 2020 and had been making real progress, but in March of 2021, the inquest heard that he relapsed. He had been living in his family home in Bryn Road, Clydach, and chose to check into the hotel as he did not want to drink around his family.
South Wales Police case officer PC Lewis Jones read a report to the inquest, which heard how Mr Richards was discovered unconscious at the hotel by family members, who subsequently contacted the emergency services. The ambulance service and police attended, and he was declared deceased. The inquest heard there was no evidence to indicate suicide, and there were no suspicious circumstances.
Mr Richards, described during the inquest as "humorous, gentle, and polite", and who had a love for attending music concerts and was a season ticket holder for Swansea City Football Club, sadly lost his mum at a very young age, something that was to have a long-lasting impact on his life. His rugby career was also cut short when he had to stop playing after sustaining a neck injury whilst for Aberavon RFC. He developed anxiety and depression, and had been taking sertraline, an anti-depressant.
Testament to his popularity, on the day of his funeral an estimated 1,000 people lined the streets in Clydach, including international rugby players.
A postmortem report provided by Dr John Williams found the medical cause of death was combined sertraline and alcohol toxicity.
Recording a conclusion of a drug and alcohol related death, acting senior coroner Colin Phillips said: "This is a very sad case. We've heard that Christian lost his mother at an early age, and that had an impact on him suffering with mental health and issues with alcohol. He made strenuous efforts to overcome his problems, but sadly before his death he relapsed."
Following the inquest, Mr Richards's father, John Richards, paid tribute to his son.
He said: "As a father I desperately miss him, he was such a good lad other than his problems.
"He was very popular, well thought of and well known. Rugby was his passion."
His partner, Gemma Griffiths also paid tribute at the conclusion of the inquest, adding: "He was a very kind and gentle person. He was very outgoing, liked family days out, and liked to travel, we used to go on city breaks.
"He was very hard working and could do anything, it wasn't just through work, he was handy doing any jobs. We would work as a team."
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