There’s been a series of different roles away from the sport, but now, Test rugby’s record appearance holder is set to return to rugby.<\/p>\n
Having played for nearly two decades with the Ospreys, making over 200 appearances for the club, he is set to return as a board member.<\/a><\/p>\n Confirmation of the 40-year-old’s return to his former club is expected in the coming days and weeks, as the Swansea-based side step up their fight for survival.<\/p>\n So, as Jones steps back into rugby, here’s what the Wales icon’s life looks like now.<\/p>\n A return to rugby<\/p>\n While Jones has enjoyed a varied career post-rugby, he has remained relatively close to the sport.<\/p>\n A board role at the Ospreys<\/a> will naturally bring him back into the heart of the Welsh game, especially at a time when both west Wales clubs are fighting for their existence.<\/p>\n Even before that, he’d kept his hand in the sport – most notably working as a pundit from time to time on BBC<\/a>.<\/p>\n During this year’s Six Nations<\/a>, the Wales legend expressed his frustration live on air about the state of the game on numerous occasions.<\/p>\n JOIN OUR WALES RUGBY FACEBOOK PAGE Latest news, analysis and much more<\/a><\/p>\n The last of those came after the win over Italy, when Jones offered a critique of the WRU in front of the governing body’s director of rugby and elite performance, Dave Reddin.<\/a><\/p>\n Earlier this year, it was also announced that Jones would sit on a new board – the Swansea Rugby Community Board – created to steer the community side of the St Helen’s stadium rebuild.<\/p>\n Prior to that, Jones had been among a number of former Ospreys to call upon the WRU to rethink their plans to cut a region – while the former captain was also present at a public meeting hosted by Swansea Council that discussed the club’s future.<\/p>\n The new jobs<\/p>\n Since retiring, Jones has also held a number of roles outside of rugby.<\/p>\n He joined Swansea University as Strategic Adviser to the National Network for Innovation In Sport and Health (NNIISH), while he’s also been tipped to take over from Jonathan ‘Jiffy’ Davies as the face of Velindre’s charity bike rides.<\/p>\n On Sunday, he took part in the Jiffy Cancer 50 ride once again from Cardiff<\/a> to Swansea.<\/p>\n Alun Wyn Jones with his medal after Jiffy’s Cancer 50 Challenge(Image: Gareth Everett\/Huw Evans Agency)<\/p>\n Last year, he also reached the final of Celebrity Masterchef <\/a>– although he didn’t end up winning the BBC show.<\/p>\n One of his most passionate projects, though, has been launching his own coffee-infused rum liqueur, Mimosa Rwm Espiritu, which has proved a tremendous success over the past couple of years.<\/p>\n It is now available in Welsh branches of Tesco and Morrisons and seems to be advancing considerably, with Jones frequently spotted championing it.<\/p>\n “I’ve been fortunate to play sport at an elite level. But as for us in the drinks business, we’re still rookies,” Jones acknowledged.<\/p>\n “We’re not quite there yet in the elite level of the drinks industry, we’re still in our infancy, but I’m looking forward to going to Tesco, and hugely grateful, for not just this opportunity, but all the support we have had.”<\/p>\n Last year, he was also appointed as Honorary Colonel of 3rd Battalion, The Royal Welsh<\/a>, by His Majesty King Charles<\/a> III.<\/p>\n In his capacity as Honorary Colonel, Jones will act as an ambassador for Wales, motivating both current and future generations of The Royal Welsh through his extensive experience and proven leadership credentials.<\/p>\n He succeeds Brigadier Russ Wardle OBE DL, the former head of the Army in Wales, in the position.<\/p>\n Jones, who will don military uniform in this role, described himself as “hugely flattered and humbled”, as well as “a little apprehensive”.<\/p>\n “Having played in our great stadium and seeing the men and women in uniform holding our national flag, it was always a significant and poignant symbol of the history and connection to the military in Wales,” he said.<\/p>\n “There was also the iconic Royal Welsh Band serving to provide acoustics in the stadium, which is something that I enjoyed as much as a player as I continue to do now as a fan.<\/p>\n “My apprehension was borne out of the responsibility felt while wearing the red jersey and all that comes with representing our nation.<\/p>\n “Learning more about the history of The Royal Welsh, particularly Sir Tasker Watkins who served in the Welch Regiment and his heroism and commitment to Wales and Welsh rugby, made it something I couldn’t turn down.<\/p>\n “I’m looking forward to learning more about 3 Royal Welsh and also share my experience of leadership in sport and the experience of leaving one career and moving into another.<\/p>\n “The fact that personnel serving with 3rd Battalion also have day jobs also sparked an awareness that Reservists are all around us in civilian life.<\/p>\n “Yes, the uniform I’ll wear in this role will be very different to what I’m used to, but one I will be equally proud to wear as any jersey in my playing career and represent 3 Royal Welsh and Wales.”<\/p>\n Family life and health scare<\/p>\n Jones has had to settle into a different way of life since retiring, admitting that he’s “had to learn to live again” on the High Performance podcast last year. He added that it involved being a more active member of his family with wife Anwen and their three daughters.<\/p>\n “It’s getting up to speed on routines, trying not to ask too many questions. I’d been so used to having day sheets throughout my career. When you’ve been told what to eat, what to wear throughout your career you do become institutionalised.<\/p>\n “It’s a bit like a jigsaw puzzle with no picture on it. I think I underestimated it a bit. I think I needed a bit of space. It’s been a quick 20 years and a long 12 months. Some of the simple things I thought would be normal (weren’t), for me to channel my energy and give me direction. I think the mapping out of it all has probably taken me longer than I thought.<\/p>\n “This is an opportunity to choose what I want to do for the rest of my life. It’s about career evolution. It’s been more challenging than I thought but there are so many options. It’s OK to take your time.”<\/p>\n Content cannot be displayed without consent<\/p>\n There’s also been a heart diagnosis to contend with, with doctors having spotted the condition atrial fibrillation during his time at Toulon.<\/p>\n He previously told the Telegraph that medical professionals had explained he likely developed the condition up to 18 months beforehand, coinciding with the time his place in the Wales team was being questioned as he struggled to maintain his high fitness standards.<\/p>\n Jones had surgery after retiring, continuing to keep an eye on the condition.<\/p>\n “The cardiac doctor picked it up straight away. My heartbeat was like a galloping horse with six legs. It was all over the shop,” he said.<\/p>\n “The things that bring it on for someone my age is likely to be cardiovascular exercise and stress, it occurs in sports like rowing and endurance sports, but it was a shock because throughout my career I have always prided myself on my fitness.”<\/p>\n Follow all of our channels to ensure you stay up to date with the latest Welsh rugby news. Sign up to our free daily newsletter here<\/a> and our WhatsApp channel here<\/a> for all the breaking news.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Arguably the greatest player Wales has ever produced, Alun Wyn Jones has kept busy after quitting rugby three…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":743658,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[35],"tags":[41649,26771,5903,101,56,54,55],"class_list":["post-743657","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-rugby","tag-alun-wyn-jones","tag-ospreys","tag-rugby","tag-sports","tag-uk","tag-united-kingdom","tag-unitedkingdom"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/743657","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=743657"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/743657\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/743658"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=743657"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=743657"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=743657"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}![](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/0_-.jpg\")
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