Tyson Fury: If I Can Speak About Mental Health Problems, Anybody Can

Tyson Fury may not have beaten Deontay Wilder, but he showed millions of people anything was possible with hard work and dedication.

Fury continues to speak out about his trials and tribulations he endured during his bout with mental illness.

“Many men would have stayed down after being knocked down by Deontay Wilder but I wanted to show the world that anything was possible,” Tyson Fury told the viewers at the BBC Sports Personality of the Year awards on Sunday night.

Fury, 30, lost a split draw against Wilder in their WBC heavyweight title fight earlier this month. Three years ago, Fury defeated Wladimir Klitschko to become the world heavyweight champion. However, Fury fell into a deep depression that led to his abuse of drugs and alcohol.

He encouraged people going through tough times to keep fighting:

“No matter what you’ve been through in your life and no matter what you’re going through, you must always continue to get back up and keep going forward and fight back,” said Fury.

Fury also encouraged athletes to speak up on mental health issues because people are too often afraid to speak up:

“We need to spread the word on mental health more in sport because a lot of people are still living in darkness and are too afraid to come out and speak about it publicly.

“If I can do it – heavyweight champion, six foot nine, 18 stone, I’m supposed to be a big tough guy – anybody can do it.

“Anybody can get help, for sure.”