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Freddie Woodward, a former diver for Team GB who competed in the 2016 Rio Olympics, has spoken candidly about the struggles he faced with online pornography addiction beginning in childhood. At the peak of his addiction, Woodward visited adult websites several times a day. Now 30 and originally from Sheffield, he is advocating for improved education on porn addiction—education that is honest, based on evidence, and free from shame. By sharing his experiences publicly, Woodward hopes to inspire others to seek help with similar struggles.
Woodward’s path to diving began early. At just seven years old, talent scouts from the City of Sheffield Diving Club identified his potential during a primary school visit in Millhouses. “I couldn’t kick a football to save my life, so it seemed a really good fit. I took to it immediately,” he recalled. By the time he reached secondary school, Woodward was training around 20 hours each week at Ponds Forge Sports Centre and competing internationally. It was during this period, around age 12, that he began regularly accessing what he describes as “hardcore” online pornography, enabled by the rise of high-speed internet. He recognized the impact of this habit as it interfered with his ability to focus on homework and exam preparation.
Throughout his teenage years, Woodward’s parents, though divorced, remained involved in his upbringing, but he believes they were unaware of the scale of his pornography use. He noted that many parents anticipate boys may encounter porn in their teenage years but find it difficult to address the topic. By age 20, Woodward had achieved significant success, including a bronze medal at the Commonwealth Games, silver at the Junior European Championships, and representing Great Britain at the Olympics. Despite these achievements, his porn use intensified, sometimes checking adult sites multiple times daily. Additionally, he started sharing explicit images and videos of himself with strangers on platforms like Facebook and Instagram, seeking a greater thrill. Unfortunately, those images were eventually leaked online, leading to the rupture of his relationship and deep emotional distress. Even then, his addiction persisted, taking a severe toll on his mental health.
After six challenging years battling his addiction, Woodward managed to quit last year by shifting his mindset, no longer viewing himself as “someone trying to quit porn” but rather as “someone who doesn’t watch porn.” Since retiring from competitive diving, he has been traveling internationally with his girlfriend, Chika Izumi, a former Japanese national artistic swimmer. The couple met seven years ago while working as aquatic performers on a Royal Caribbean cruise ship. Izumi shared that Woodward revealed his struggles early in their relationship and expressed full support for his decision to speak out. Experts from the British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy have noted a surge in clients seeking help for uncontrolled pornography use. Psychotherapist Dr Paula Hall, who established a specialist sex and porn addiction center in Leamington Spa, emphasized that society is facing a growing problem but is often reluctant to openly address or identify porn addiction. A spokesperson from the Department of Health and Social Care highlighted the importance of recent online safety laws aimed at protecting children from accessing harmful content
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