Ten men have claimed to be Celebrity Apprentice Australia 2022 winner Benji Marshall‘s father after he confessed to not knowing who his biological dad was.
During the June 20 episode of Celebrity Apprentice, the NRL great discussed his trauma of having been bullied in primary school for not having contact with his father.
This later sparked conversation during an interview with Nova’s Fitzy and Wippa on June 22, in which Benji revealed the shocking ordeal.
According to the 37-year-old Kiwi, a 2002 documentary sparked the flurry of dodgy claims.
“After I made my [NRL] debut, I did this documentary thing in New Zealand and said I’d never met my dad and I had 10 emails from people saying they were my dad,” he said.
On Celebrity Apprentice, Benji explained that he’s learned to put his childhood pain behind him. This includes not wanting to know his father, a stance that remains unchanged to this day.
“I don’t want to know my dad,” Benji doubled down to Ryan “Fitzy” Fitzgerald and Michael “Wippa” Wipfli.
“I’m one of those people, though that like if there’s like toxic people in my life, I can just cut them off and that’s it. I’m not really dealing with you again.”
Benji’s mother, Lydia Marshall, gave birth to the rugby star during high school when she was just 15 years old.
Benji Marshall Admits to Wondering What His Nationality Is
Despite not wanting contact with his father, the Celebrity Apprentice favourite admitted that his unknown nationality intrigues him.
“I do have this want to know like, what am I?” he said. “Am I like, English? Am I, I don’t know. Like what half-nationality wise?”
In 2013, Benji revealed he learned a little about his ancestry during a family reunion in Porirua, New Zealand.
According to the athlete, he has Scottish and Aussie links after his forefathers emigrated from Scotland to Tasmania.
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