Ollie Smith, on behalf of the missing brother

On September 8, the rugby world celebrated with great fanfare the start of the world high mass with a dream France-New Zealand. In the middle of this collective osmosis, a player experienced a mix of feelings. That same day, young Scottish fullback Ollie Smith (23) commemorated the death of his brother Patrick, which occurred four years earlier.

On that disastrous night of September 7 to 8, 2019, this 21-year-old engineering student fell out of the window of the third floor of a building in Edinburgh. His death, noted by emergency services on site, moved Scotland. “Patrick was a fantastic student, about to start a master’s degree”lamented his teacher Lev Sarkisov.

Unlike his brother, then a great hope in Scottish rugby, Patrick Smith preferred swimming pools. “And he was a passionate blood donorOllie Smith told the Refuse To Fail podcast [en anglais] in 2022. I don’t know how it came to him, but he made his first donation as soon as he could, on his 17th birthday.”

An association to maintain the passion of the brother

To indulge in this unusual passion, “Patzo”, as his loved ones nicknamed him, did not hesitate to defy prohibitions. “As he was part of the LGBTQ community, he was not allowed to donate bloodcontinued his brother. So he was lying, because he only wanted to help people.” This ban was repealed in the United Kingdom in June 2021, almost two years after the death of Patrick Smith.

To maintain his memory and pursue his passion, his loved ones founded the Give Blood 4 Good association. “This was done during the first confinement, six months after his death”, continues Ollie. The NGO aims to democratize this little-known practice, since only 7% of British people indulge in it, according to a survey published by YouGov [lien en anglais] in November 2022.

On its website, Give Blood 4 Good says it has saved more than 10,000 lives in three years. “But it’s mainly my sister Hanna and my father who manage it”, specifies the player. He still makes his contribution by publicizing the association. “I started donating blood myself”he says.

“There are a lot of misconceptions about this. But I played 80 minutes the day before my first donation, and everything went very well.”

Ollie Smith, Scottish player

to the Refuse To Fail podcast

The association’s sounding board grew as Ollie Smith’s career progressed. Professional since January 2021, a little more than a year after the death of Patrick, he honored his first cap with Scotland 18 months later, in July 2022. Should we see in this personal story a form of resilience ? “It’s terrible to say, but I told my mother a few months ago that this tragedy was the best thing that could have happened to me growing up,” he agreed to Times [article en anglais] in 2022. “I take everything with a pinch of salt, it doesn’t matter as much”he puts things into perspective.

His career takes off… in music

His family supports Ollie’s development on a daily basis, and if you attend a Scotland match during the World Cup, it’s a safe bet that you will recognize his father Gavin. “He plays the trumpet during every one of my matches! smiles the Glasgow player for The Herald. And in the club, someone behind him holds giant sheets of paper with the lyrics to the songs he writes. There’s one for every player!” For example, Huw Jones’ name is hummed to the tune of “Hey Jude”, by the Beatles.

Despite some hassles during the preparation match against the Blues in Saint-Etienne in August (his trumpet was temporarily confiscated), Gavin Smith offers “a familiar face” to his son for his first World Cup. And he accompanies him on the verge of one of the biggest challenges in Scottish rugby, since Smith, Chardon’s youngest player at this World Cup, is called – alternating with Blair Kinghorn – to take over from the illustrious Stuart Hogg, national icon and ex-captain retired from the field since July. A huge responsibility. But he will probably take it with a pinch of salt.