19 Facts About Bill Beaumont

1.

Bill Beaumont was Chairman of the Rugby Football Union from 2012 to 2016 and has been Chairman of World Rugby since 1 July 2016.

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2.

Bill Beaumont was educated at Cressbrook School, Kirkby Lonsdale and Ellesmere College in Shropshire.

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3.

Bill Beaumont joined Fylde Rugby Club, Lancashire, in 1969 when he was 17 years old and stayed with the club till injury forced his retirement in 1982.

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4.

Bill Beaumont won 34 caps for England, then a record for a lock, and was captain 21 times.

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5.

Bill Beaumont made his international debut as a 22-year-old in Dublin in 1975 as a late replacement for Roger Uttley.

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6.

Bill Beaumont toured Australia in 1975, Japan, Fiji and Tonga in 1979, and Argentina in 1981 with England.

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7.

Bill Beaumont played 15 times for the Barbarians, including the match against the All Blacks in 1978.

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8.

Bill Beaumont took part in the 1977 British Lions tour to New Zealand after being called up as a replacement when Nigel Horton broke his thumb, and played in the final three tests.

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9.

Bill Beaumont was an inspiring captain of the North of England, whom he led to victory over the All Blacks in 1979, and of England, who won their first Grand Slam for 23 years in 1980.

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10.

Bill Beaumont then captained the 1980 British Lions tour to South Africa playing in 10 of the 18 matches.

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11.

Bill Beaumont was the first English captain of the Lions since Doug Prentice in 1930.

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12.

Bill Beaumont retired from rugby in 1982 on medical advice from doctors, because of successive concussions.

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13.

Bill Beaumont became a regular contestant on the BBC quiz show A Question of Sport, eventually becoming the show's second longest-serving captain, only being surpassed by fellow Rugby Union player Matt Dawson in 2018.

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14.

Bill Beaumont hosted two episodes of the show in 1996 in the regular host David Coleman's absence: Will Carling stood in as captain for Bill Beaumont's team.

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15.

Bill Beaumont was the managing director of his family's textile business in Lancashire, which is the only remaining textile manufacturer in Chorley, but resigned in May 2017.

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16.

Bill Beaumont has represented England since 1999 on the International Rugby Board.

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17.

Bill Beaumont then applied for the role of Chairman of World Rugby to replace Bernard Lapasset and on 11 May 2016 he was unanimously elected to the office, with his tenure beginning on 1 July 2016.

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18.

Bill Beaumont is an Honorary President of the rugby charity Wooden Spoon that funds projects for disadvantaged children and young people in Britain and Ireland.

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19.

Bill Beaumont was knighted in the Queen's New Years Honours list in 2019.

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