The couple had two other children – daughter Gabby and son Bryn, who has played for a number of teams in New Zealand and Japan, including his dad’s former club Waikato.
“I loved the pressure, I loved the responsibility, and I thrive on being involved with teams that have been underdogs,” Gatland said about his involvement with Wales.
Gatland took over following a group stage exit to Fiji at the 2007 World Cup in France.
Within months, he had completely changed the team’s fortunes around and Wales were Grand Slam champions in 2008.
He remained in charge until 2019, during which time, they reached two World Cup semi-finals, and won two further Grand Slams in 2012 and 2019.
Gatland returned in 2022 following the sacking of Wayne Pivac – but this spell was to prove far less successful, and he left in 2025 with the team on a record losing run.
He admitted that the constant pressure of the role eventually took its toll, and said “I struggled with the negativity in the end”.
“I’ve made a lot of sacrifices in my life,” he added.
“And I want to make sure in the next 15 to 20 years I get to really enjoy and do the things I want to do.”
On whether he has any regrets about his career, he said: “nothing that springs to mind.
“There is always times where you might’ve done something a little bit differently, but I don’t dwell too much on the past.
“You can’t change things – you have to learn from experiences.”