Five professional athletes who use CBD

Cannabis Health takes a look at some of the famous sporting faces who have publicly voiced their support for CBD.

Several well-known sportsmen and women, from backgrounds as varied as MMA to golf and football, have spoken out about the use of cannabidiol and the benefits they have experienced. In fact, many are now actively working with companies to endorse, and even launch, products. 

If it’s good enough for them…

Dominic Day and George Kruis

As professional rugby players, Day and Kruis were no strangers to injury, but after using CBD for their ailments, they realised there wasn’t a product on the market that they could trust – so they decided to create their own. 

Day said: “We knew a lot of professional athletes using CBD who would’ve been in same situation as us, so we decided go out and source what we think is the safest product on the market.”

Now, the duo’s company fourfiveCBD offers a range of CBD products, including topical products and supplements, and is stocked in over 130 Boots stores across the UK.

Nate Diaz

Following defeat at UFC 202 in 2016, Mixed Martial Artist Nate Diaz hit the headlines after using a CBD-infused vape pen at a post-fight press conference. The UFC investigated the move, but he was cleared of all charges, CBD was removed from the list of banned substances by the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA), and Diaz continued to vocalise the benefits of CBD use. 

MMA fighters regularly suffer from concussion, soreness and inflammation, amongst several other painful ailments and traumas. By addressing all these problems, CBD helps them recover quickly and continue performing at 100 per cent.

Now, Diaz has taken his advocacy for CBD to the next level – partnering with his brother Nick to launch Game Up, which offers a variety of top-quality products.  

Megan Rapinoe

US soccer star Megan Rapinoe turned heads when she announced she would be sponsored by Mendi, a company focused on making CBD sports recovery products for athletes, which also happened to be chaired by her sister Rachael.

However, the partnership wasn’t solely based on the footballer’s passion for using CBD for recovery – Rapinoe was also keen to ensure female-led brands were represented in the industry.

Discussing her use of CBD, Rapinoe said: “I wanted a healthier, more natural option for pain management, sleep aid, relaxation while flying, and general recovery.

“If this is an industry that is really going to serve everyone, then everyone needs to have a seat at the table.”

James Haskell

After using CBD during his career as an England rugby international, James Haskell has now teamed up with All Blacks star Ben Franks to launch their own CBD brand, Impact Sports. 

Discussing the move, and how modern athletes are reacting to the use of CBD, James said: “There’s a lot of confusion and people associate it with getting high. So, in the sporting world, the primary concern by any professional athlete is, ‘will I pass a drugs test?’.

“But there’s an appetite from people to find a substitute to help with the rigors of sport and to deal with the issues on your body. People are reaching out to me all the time now that I’ve launched [Impact Sports]. They want to know, they want to deal with it, they want to test it out – and I think it’s something that is only going to get bigger and bigger.”