Should athletes adopt a vegan diet? Zoe Neal, The Weald School

Over the past decade, there has been a rapid rise in the veganism movement amongst sports performers across the globe. Its benefits have been promoted and advertised world-wide with focus on how the diet can greatly improve a person’s health and, furthermore, their athletic performance. In fact, multiple footballers who competed in the 2022 World Cup are vegan, including Neymar da Silva Santos Júnior, who made the change after acquiring injury, Gareth Bale and World Cup winner Leonel Messi, often referred to as the world’s best football player, was reported to have adopted elements of veganism into his dietary choices.