The former player: 'I wanted to continue playing'
Warning: This piece contains descriptions of racially offensive language and behaviour
Ex-England centre Luther Burrell claims that speaking out to expose racism in professional rugby led his professional journey to an early conclusion.
In a June 2022, Burrell described racism as being "rife" in the sport, showing digital communications and recalling training ground "comments" he had been exposed to while representing Newcastle.
At that time 34 and without a team, Burrell's only professional rugby since has been three appearances with guest team the Barbarians.
"I've have definitely had to retire because of what went on," he told media outlets.
"I really wanted to carry on playing, naturally I did. I sought that, and it fell through when news came out that there were inquiries going on.
"This situation was challenging - I had to just come to terms with the outcome and understand that this entire situation is a lot bigger than me."
A rugby governing body investigation in 2023 found Burrell's allegations were true "likely correct", but stated it could not collect enough proof to definitively say they occurred at Newcastle.
Luther Burrell played in all of England's international games in 2014 and 2015, but was surprisingly overlooked for their team for the 2015 tournament
Burrell told journalists he also faced prejudice within the England set-up, during a international career that saw him earn 15 appearances after his debut in February 2014.
"I've had several traumatic experiences within the national team," he said.
"Some discrimination and some just outdated thinking that's really unacceptable."
Racism had become accepted in team environments, in Burrell's view.
"It's something that has been disguised as banter and that's been the problem that I've personally experienced and seen," said Burrell, who is of Jamaican heritage.
"Over a extended period you just learn to think that it's the norm and that is fine and that it's not harmful, but that's incorrect."
Burrell explains he was finally motivated to go public after a team-mate at Newcastle referred to him as a "enslaved person" and told him to put sunscreen on his wrists and ankles "where your shackles were."
The governing body said Burrell's disclosures had led to "increased scrutiny at the environment within the professional level and to the implementation of an action plan for the elite level."
"The organization has given considerable attention on diversity and diversity in the sport and a substantial amount of work completed both prior and after Luther Burrell came forward and revealed his experiences of racism and classism," it continued.
"We are ongoing work with clubs and stakeholders in the elite level to work for a environment of inclusivity but recognize this takes time and is an ongoing process."
Every Premiership and PWR club now has in-person training on building welcoming environments, with its effectiveness tracked via specific documentation and feedback.
All England players, including youth squads, are trained in being "engaged observers" to step in and protect others from harmful behaviour.
"You be so pleased of what you have done," Burrell's mother Joyce told him as part of the documentary about his experiences.
"I know it has had this effect on you and ended your career, but in our view, you have done so well. We are so impressed of you and to have you as a family member."
Burrell's dad Geoff died soon after the filming of the film, and his sister passed away earlier this year.
Burrell, who grew up on a council estate in his hometown, maintains his work to make the sport more open.
His charitable organization works to connect with children in disadvantaged communities and help them thrive both on the field with free sports coaching, mentoring and nutrition education.
"My personal motivations are genuine, I want to see the evolution of the game and if nobody else is willing to share their story then I'll persist to fight that cause because I'm not just doing this for myself," he said.
"We have an obligation to make the game as great as it can be and the more I talk about it hopefully the more comfortable fellow players will feel about discussing their personal experiences as well.
"I take the bull by the opportunity and keep bearing this banner and continue carrying this weight and accomplish what I can to develop opportunities and make the sport more attractive and more welcoming.
"There's a lot of underprivileged children and a lot of economic hardship and I honestly think that the sport has the ability to transform their futures, just as it transformed things for me."
Burrell scored for the Barbarians on a comeback to former club Northampton in late 2022
