10 Athletes You Didn’t Know Smoked

Smoking is not usually associated with sports because there is such a large emphasis on being as fit as possible. This is not to say that athletes do not smoke, however. There are some which are open about sparking up the occasional cigarette or cigar, whilst there are also a few who have tried and failed to conceal their habit. Additionally, athletes are role models for millions of kids, but they are only human and often under immense stress, so there is always an interesting debate when an athlete is seen with a cigarette in hand.

10. Kaarsten Braasch

Kaarsten Braasch is most famous for competing in the “Battle of the Sexes,” which saw him defeat Venus and Serena Williams during the 1998 Australian Open whilst he was ranked 203 in the world and 31-years old. He defeated Serena 6-1 and Venus 6-2 after they claimed that they could defeat a man ranked in the top 200. His highest ranking was number 38 (which he achieved in June 1994), but he was still a hugely popular player and this was largely due to the fact that he did not conform to the typical tennis club style. Braasch was described by one journalist as “a man whose training regime centered around a pack of cigarettes and more than a couple bottles of ice cold lager.” He was also known to smoke a cigarette during changeovers; certainly something you can’t imagine Nedal, Federer, Djokovic or any modern player doing.