Sixteen years after Candice Warner was publicly shamed for her “toilet rally” with Sonny Bill Williams, the former Ironwoman is taking back her power.
The mother-of-three is ready to tell her story on her own terms in her new book Running Strong: Falling, Rising, Breathing, out now in stores.
In it, she describes the depression she suffered after being caught in a toilet stall with rugby star Williams during a night at the Clovelly Hotel in 2007.
Candice was just 22 years old and trying to find her way in public as an athlete and model. Candice found the humiliation and subsequent crash difficult to deal with, and even contemplated suicide.
Now happily married to Australian cricketer David Warner, with whom she has three daughters, Candice is no longer afraid to speak openly about her past and hopes other women who read her book can see that the only way forward leads up when they hit bottom.
Sixteen years after Candice Warner was publicly shamed for her “toilet rally” with Sonny Bill Williams, the former Ironwoman is taking back her power
“My goal is to tell my story in a way that hopefully helps other people and empowers people,” Candice told Chron Australia on Wednesday as she joined reporter Ciara O’Loughlin during an intense workout at Sydney’s Acero gym put through its paces.
“If you get knocked down, you can get back up. When you hit rock bottom, you can start fresh and re-evaluate your life,” she added.
‘Where do you want to go? What do you want to be known for? Who do you want around you?
“So the story is about picking yourself up, being resilient, and how I made it through.”
Aged just 22, Candice found it difficult to cope with the humiliation and subsequent fall from grace and even contemplated suicide, as she revealed in The Sunday Project last week
The 38-year-old – who shares Ivy Mae, eight, Indi Rae, seven, and Isla Rose, three, with her cricketer husband David Warner, 36 (all pictured), said the main reason she made the decision to write the book was that her little girls might read it one day
The 38-year-old – who shares Ivy Mae, eight, Indi Rae, seven, and Isla Rose, three, with her husband David, 36, said the main reason she decided to write the book was because that their little girls might read it someday.
The turning point where she realized she needed to face her demons head-on came in 2020 when she was a contestant with SAS Australia.
During the grueling military-style show, she was grilled over her tryst with Williams and burst into tears as she revealed how she lost everything during the scandal.
After bravely opening up about her experiences at the time, she decided it was time to put her full story into words.
“It wasn’t until after I did SAS a few years ago that people started saying, ‘You should do a podcast or you need to write a book,'” she explained.
“Now that my daughters are getting older – my eldest will be nine this year and she’s very inquisitive – I wanted to write it for them so that one day they could read it and understand my story in my words, rather than an interrupted version where.” They are fed things or read things that are not necessarily correct.’
She continued: “Being in the public eye is putting your whole life on display and it’s not always going to be good.
“You’re always trying to set the best possible example for your kids, but I think it’s important to have those real conversations with them when they’re ready, and to be honest.
“And that’s why it’s so good to do a book, because they can read it, they can digest it and it’s something they will always have.”
The turning point where she realized she needed to face her demons head-on came in 2020 when she was a contestant with SAS Australia (pictured). During the grueling military-style show, she was grilled over her tryst with Williams and burst into tears as she revealed how she lost everything during the scandal. After bravely opening up about her experiences at the time, she decided it was time to put her full story into words
Candice (right, March 2007) was photographed in a compromising position with rugby player Sonny Bill Williams (left, March 2006) by a peeping-peer in a Sydney pub toilet in 2007, sparking a huge media storm that took her years to recover from to recover from it
Candice believes she was unfairly treated by the press during the ‘toilet meeting’ sixteen years ago and media coverage has emphasized the double standards women face – but things are slowly starting to improve.
“It all happened sixteen years ago and times have changed so much. Women feel more comfortable talking about things they’ve been through without feeling judged or feeling wrong,” she said.
“The fact that I now feel comfortable talking about everything and saying everything in my own words just goes to show how far we’ve come since then.”
When asked if she thought women were more scrutinized in the media than men, she said, “They are and that’s another reason I wanted to write the book, because I like other people – other women – want to let them know.
“When they go through hard times, [they know] they too can get through anything if they put their mind to it.’
Candice (pictured working out at Sydney’s Acero gym last week) believes she was treated unfairly by the press during the ‘toilet meet’ sixteen years ago, and media coverage has emphasized the double standards women face – but things are slowly starting to improve
While the former Ironwoman knows firsthand how difficult being a woman in public can be, she’s not worried about her daughters growing up in the spotlight because she and her husband David have the experience to protect them
While the former Ironwoman knows firsthand how difficult being a woman in public can be, she’s not worried about her daughters growing up in the spotlight because she and her husband David have the knowledge to protect them.
“I think David and I have so much experience, we can always guide them in the right direction and try to help them and show them the way,” she said.
“But who knows which way they will go? Whether it is an academic path, the arts if they want to be successful in sports. But whatever it is, we will always support them.”
When asked if she thought women were more scrutinized in the media than men, she said, “They are and that’s another reason I wanted to write the book, because I like other people – other women – want to let that know.”