Time waits for no man, and with Sir Geoff Hurst rapidly approaching his 80th birthday, the 1966 World Cup winning hat-trick hero has had a bump in the road health wise.
One of only three remaining survivors of the greatest day in England’s long and proud football history, Hurst has had to have a pacemaker fitted after his heart beat shot up to almost 200 beats per minute.
According to The Sun, he had to have emergency treatment after an assessment by specialists.
Far from limiting him, however, he appears keen to get back to as normal a life as possible.
MORE: Liverpool’s terrible injury blow
“I have just had a pacemaker fitted. I had a mild stroke a couple of years ago and had tests after that. I was diagnosed with atrial fibrillation, an irregular heartbeat, which is not life threatening,” he was quoted as saying.
“When you tell people you have a pacemaker they think ‘oh Christ’, but for me it is not quite like that.
“I wasn’t feeling bad beforehand but it prevents the irregularities and possibly falling over and damaging myself or driving a car and running somebody over. I have got to see a specialist in four to six weeks just to recap. But I’m doing OK with it.”
It’s good to see him in such good spirits more generally, and with a fitness level that would put many 79 year olds to shame.
Clearly, however, he will need to go a little bit steadier than he did before, to ensure that there are no further health mishaps.