Rugby legend Gareth Thomas takes game-changing Tackle HIV campaign to Durham University freshers' week
Gareth Thomas took his Tackle HIV campaign to the historic city of Durham in a bid to remove the stigma surrounding sexual health as the university opens its arms for freshers week.
The public awareness campaign was first founded by the Welsh rugby legend in 2020, inspired by his own experience as someone living with HIV and the public misconceptions surrounding the virus.
Armed with the knowledge young people are statistically the most likely to be diagnosed with a sexually transmitted infection, Thomas has travelled across the country to combat stereotypes and bust myths through education.
“Being in Durham has been really engaging,” he said. “Students have been very open to discussion and especially to recognising their lack of understanding about HIV.
READ MORE: Rugby legend Gareth Thomas completes gruelling Pen y Fan challenge to help tackle HIV stigma
“One really powerful example which reminded me why this campaign is so needed, is that we met a medical student who believed HIV could be transmitted through using the same knife and fork.
“As much as people might roll their eyes and think that’s ignorant, the reality is that person only thought that because they’ve never been told anything different. If that knowledge has been passed on from another generation and it’s never been corrected, how were they supposed to know any different?
“That was a really powerful reminder to us that the stigma still exists, even though we sometimes palm it off as an older generational thing.”
This encounter has left the Welshman even more certain that the campaign's target audience is the right one.
“A survey we did found that less than half of 18-24 year olds said they would consider taking an STI or HIV test because they didn’t think they were at risk,” he said.
“That shows there’s still a stigma by association. If people talk about HIV the assumption is that person is part of the LGBTQ+ community because it’s still assumed that’s who the virus affects.
“It shouldn’t take bravery for people to want to care about themselves and sexual health because there’s no stigma about going to the doctor if you have a headache.”
Using his own experiences from a rugby perspective, Thomas invited members of Durham University’s rugby team aboard the bus to encourage open and honest conversations about the virus.
“I spoke to them a lot about allyship and what being a good ally looks like,” he said. “It’s not just about calling people out or righting wrong’s in comfortable situations, sometimes it’s a lifestyle choice.
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“Arming people with information can allow them to apply their knowledge in uncomfortable situations.”
The former British and Irish Lions star’s trip to Durham comes just days after he successfully scaled Pen y Fan peak ten times over 24 hours to raise the profile of his tour.
The peak, which sits at 3,000ft tall, is south Wales’ highest mountain which Thomas sees as fitting for the message he hopes to convey to the public about just how capable people living with HIV can be.
“Climbing Pen y Fan ten times is equivalent to climbing Everest and a lot of people face their own Mount Everest in life,” the 50-year-old said. “We showed you can overcome difficult times in small steps.
“I wanted to be a physical example because verbally you never know if what you’re saying has landed, but practising what I preach makes it very hard for people to get away from our message."
Durham is the last stop on Thomas’ UK road trip but he’s confident the ripple-effect will continue.
“I really feel we’ve enhanced people’s lives on this tour,” he said. “I know it’s a cliche to say if we can affect one person’s life then it’s all been worthwhile, but the thought of changing thousands of lives - or more - gives me a real sense of achievement.”
Tackle HIV is a campaign led by Gareth Thomas in partnership with ViiV Healthcare and Terrence Higgins Trust and aims to tackle the stigma and misunderstanding around HIV. For more information visit tacklehiv.org and follow @tacklehiv