Ritchie De Laet is now a footballer. In recent years he has battled an invisible illness. That is what this year’s De Warmste Week is about, so De Laet courageously testified about ulcerative colitis, a chronic intestinal disease.
Ulcerative colitis is a chronic intestinal disease in which a large part of the intestine becomes inflamed. It is related to the (better known) Crohn’s disease. The 37-year-old player with a past at Royal Antwerp, among others, has now given testimony about the case.
In a collaboration between Ethias and Royal Antwerp FC, De Laet speaks candidly in a beautiful video about his illness and the consequences it has on his professional career. Both when he was still playing football and now.
In recent months he has no longer been seen as an analyst, because he cannot cope due to the stress in his stomach. And even as a football player, he had to drop out a few times during the warm-up, because there was a deviation from the normal course of events.
De Laet openly talks about his illness
“I had noticed for some time that something was not normal, because I had to go to the toilet straight away every time after a meal. But I didn’t think too much about it. I could do my work and was happy,” said De Laet, according to The Latest News. That changed when De Laet turned 30-31 and the problems became more and more serious.
“In 2022, Miguel Van Damme died and there was a minute’s silence before the match. That was only said just before kick-off. In my head it was war at the time, because I had fully prepared for the match, with my own coping mechanism. I just couldn’t handle it. I told the coach that and then I ultimately didn’t play.”
