Smillie, from Bradford, has represented Jamaica at rugby union, played professional rugby league, and lived in Germany and Poland after signing for American football teams.

In September he made his debut as a professional wrestler.

"I've always been a massive fan of wrestling - so for me it was only a matter of time," he said.

After studying at Tong High School and Leeds City College, Smillie played rugby union at academy level for Doncaster Knights, and was scouted for the Jamaica national side, qualifying on ancestry.

His rugby league clubs include Bradford Bulls and Halifax Panthers, but in 2021 he was asked to try out at the NFL Combine in London when video clips of his speed were spotted.

Although he was not selected for the NFL International Player Pathway programme and went undrafted after trying out for the Canadian Football League, Smillie ended up playing for several teams in Europe on a full-time basis.

"It was great playing over in Germany and testing myself against top athletes," he said.

"It also showed me American football in Europe is massive with the fanbase it has."

But he has jumped at the chance to try wrestling, having been a childhood fan and with a number of friends involved in it already.

Smillie travels to Loughborough to train at the Elevation Wrestling Academy with Joseph Conners, an experienced wrestler who has taken part in WWE events.

"The way I see it, if you want to be the best, you've got to train with the best," Smillie added.

He will now feature in a number of wrestling shows across England.

Smillie believes there are plenty of skills he has been able to transfer from his other sports.

"You have to be really fit, you've got to be agile and strong," he explained.

"One of the differences I would say is you've got to have a good personality and a good character, that's massive in wrestling.

"You can be a great wrestler but if you have the character as well, that can help you stand out."

According to Conners, "the sky can certainly be the limit" for his new protégé.

"One of the big things you can't teach is work ethic and obviously with his background in professional sports, he's got that in abundance.

"Not only has he trained with myself, he's also been going up and down the country training with some of the top pros who've done it in the UK over the last 15-20 years, so you can't knock his ambition."

Smillie grew up watching American wrestlers including Dwayne "the Rock" Johnson and Triple H, but in the UK there have been shows at Wembley Stadium, Leeds Arena and Sheffield Arena in recent years.

The LNER Community Stadium in York has also applied to be able to host wrestling and boxing matches.

Smillie added: "My goal is to take this as far as I possibly can and ultimately wrestle at the highest level, whether that's WWE, AEW or the top independent promotions."