Ex All Blacks coach reveals ‘scary part’ of undetected SBW condition

Exclusive: For those close to Sonny Bill Williams, the first reaction was shock.

The second emotion after watching his open-heart surgery journey was relief.

The third?

Wonder, at how Williams’ already iconic sporting career could have been even greater had he not been born with a life-threatening congenital heart condition.

Williams’ heart issue was only discovered after he went to hospital for a routine check-up following surgery on his neck.

“He was a great athlete, and he’s a good man,” Williams’ former All Blacks coach Steve Hansen told nine.com.au.

“So it was a bit of a shock to the old system to see him under the pump - literally. And it goes to show just how incredible an athlete he was, to be able to perform to the levels he did, under the circumstances he was doing it under.”

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Sonny Bill reveals brush with death, open-heart surgery in extraordinary video

In a 24-minute YouTube video, Williams asked his surgeon, Michael O’Keefe, whether the heart issue would have been a hindrance to his legendary sporting career, which featured two Rugby World Cup titles and two NRL premierships.

“Definitely the fact that you did so well at such a high level just goes to show you how fit you must have been to be able to compensate for it,” O’Keefe replied.

“You’ve been playing with a handicap which you haven’t realised for a long time.“

The Williams what-if evoked memories of the late Jonah Lomu, who died aged 40 from a heart attack linked to his kidney disease - less than three weeks after SBW lifted the 2015 World Cup.

Lomu changed rugby forever despite his nephrotic syndrome which required regular, draining dialysis treatment.

The blockbusting winger remarkably returned to professional rugby after receiving a kidney transplant in 2004.

“The difference is Jonah was well aware of his condition,” Hansen said.

“The scary part was that Sonny wasn’t. We’re lucky to have him here because the condition he had, it could have caused a major heart problem at any point in his life. It’s just wonderful that the doctors have managed to find it and rectify it, and now he should be able to live on and live a long life, which would be great.”

The Sydney-based Williams said his health scare now explained why he wasn’t able to get as fit as he would have liked to from his late-20s on.

The 41-year-old also enjoyed a successful professional boxing career with his last fight coming against Paul Gallen last year.

“It just shows you how good an athlete he was because you wouldn’t expect that there was anything wrong with him, and he certainly didn’t play like there was anything wrong with him,” Hansen said.

“He’s gone on and done the boxing side of things as well, so yeah, incredible.“

Hansen backed Williams throughout his transition to rugby and regularly credited he and fellow code-hopper Brad Thorn for notably lifting the All Blacks’ standards in the gym.

“He was the ultimate professional athlete. He looked after his body and did whatever he needed to do to get himself in the right shape to be able to perform for the team,” Hansen said.

“And just as well he did because otherwise, he wouldn’t have been able to perform with the circumstances he had. There’s always going to be critics when you have a profile like he has, and he’s prepared to stand up for what he believes in, so sometimes that upsets people too.

“But the bottom line is, he was an incredible athlete. He played 50 Test matches for the All Blacks. To play one Test match is an achievement, so to be able to play 50 tells you just how good he was, and he made a difference.“

One of Hansen’s biggest coaching calls was hooking Conrad Smith for Williams at halftime of the 2015 World Cup final against the Wallabies.

“Which shocked a lot of people, but within two minutes he’s created an offload to Ma’a Nonu to score, and really won us the game,” he said.

O’Keefe explained Williams had undergone a Ross procedure, with his aortic valve replaced by his pulmonary valve.

“The doctors both said that it’s a miracle that you found it because it’s a case of a perfectly fit looking person dropping dead,” Williams said.

“Because my heart was 7.5 centimetres, it was about to pop as the doctors said.”

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