Former champion surfer Tom Carroll has reached plenty of highs in his life. Performance highs, winning two ASP world titles; adrenalin-fuelled highs, from riding monster waves around the world. But for every high the 52-year-old experienced in the water, he has suffered as many lows thanks to his addiction to the drug ‘Ice’, also known as crystal meth.
Carroll’s not the first professional sportsperson to admit to a drug addiction in his past, but the three-time Pipeline Masters winner is now doing all he can to try to steer people away from the path he took. That includes fellow elite athletes, and the Gold Coast SUNS playing group held on his every word when he spoke about the making the most of the opportunities they’ve been given.
“For me, I know that listening to our elders, in any shape or form, or getting a chance to hear their story or what they did, that was a way for me to connect with what was going on at the time. Actually have some signposts put up, some warning signs,” Carroll said.
“I saw a lot of open eyes and....everyone had a really sharp focus on me. There weren’t many people looking away or looking down. They were good listeners. They were a good group of guys.
“Anyone who wants to get really good at what they’re doing will need to be able to focus and put in time and effort and tap in to that gift that they have. I think it’s the same for any sportsperson or artist or any person’s talent in their field, is to tap in to that gift.
The AFL introduced its Illicit Drugs Policy in 2005. In 2012, there were 26 detections recorded for illicit drug use during out-of-competition player tests. Speaking last May about the increase in positive tests, AFL CEO Andrew Demetriou said: “The AFL playing group largely falls within the high risk 18-30 male age group and individual players are not immune to peer group pressure and poor decision-making. However, the use of illicit drugs in the AFL playing group remains substantially lower compared with the same age group of males in the wider community.”
The AFL Illicit Drugs Policy aims to educate players about the seriousness of using illicit drugs, direct players who have chosen to use drugs to appropriate counselling and treatment programs, and also provide support to change the behaviour of those players. It’s a far cry from the support network Carroll had during his professional surfing days, when he was left to his own devices to deal with some devastating personal issues at different times throughout his career.
“Surfing is an individual sport. We don’t have the support in the water, like you have support on the field. You have a whole team around you. That’s a bit different.”
There are several keen surfers on the GC SUNS list – Matthew Shaw and Nathan Bock, to name a couple – and Carroll had some words of advice for keen board riders amongst the group, especially those who had a yearning to chase big waves.
“Confidence is pretty much everything. Confidence in yourself; confidence in your equipment.
“Just go one step at a time. You’ve got to take a few risks. Get yourself prepared real good.
“Be really mindful that you’re going to be scared out there, no matter what. Try to do a couple of good six-foot days, eight-foot days, and move it on incrementally.
With the SUNS sitting in the AFL top eight with a 5-2 record, Carroll – who was presented with a club guernsey by skipper, Gary Ablett – said he hoped the team could qualify for its first finals series.
“That’s a really good indication of where we’re going here (the improvement in the club’s win-loss record). The confidence building that can go on around that, it’s just onward and upward.”
