Former England wing Ben Cohen says he “chooses to forget” being part of the team’s 2003 Rugby World Cup triumph as a way of coping with life after elite sport.

Cohen has suffered from financial difficulties, mental health issues and hearing loss since retiring and now resists being drawn into conversations about England’s solitary Rugby World Cup success.

“You relive that moment, week in, week out, and trying to move on from it can be a little bit difficult sometimes,” he told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme.

“You choose to forget what you have achieved – if I can get away from that, I don’t have to live it so much because it brings a little bit of pain.”