Tributes have been paid to the wife of former England rugby star Tom Youngs after she died from cancer. A statement from Leicester Tigers released this afternoon confirmed Tiffany Youngs had passed away.
Tiffany, who was 35, was diagnosed in 2014 with Hodgkin Lymphoma, a type of blood cancer. Her brave battle with the condition has been well documented within the rugby community, who have sent their well wishes to Tom and the rest of his family.
The statement from Leicester Tigers said: "Leicester Tigers are deeply saddened by the news that Tiffany Youngs has passed away after her heroic battle with illness. On behalf of everybody at the club, we send our condolences to the Youngs and Sands families.
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"The club will be providing no further details and asks that the Youngs and Sands families have their privacy respected at this time."
Among those who sent their condolences were Bristol Bears, who wrote a tweet saying: "Desperately sad news. Sending our love and condolences to the Youngs family."
Other Premiership clubs including Harlequins and Exeter Chiefs also paid their respects to Tiffany. Messages of support were also sent by fans, Irish Rugby and the Guinness Six Nations among others.
In October last year, the Tigers said that Tom, who played 28 times at hooker for England between 2012 and 2015, was taking "indefinite leave" in order to help care for his wife. Tom's younger brother Ben, who is England's most capped Test player of all time with 117, has also taken time out of the game at various points to help his family.
On April 27, it was announced that Tom was retiring from rugby. In Leicester's next match, he led the team out onto the pitch alongside his children.
