Lilian Thuram doesn’t get into specifics when recalling racist incidents he endured as a player. He doesn’t have to. He can generalize. He can summarize. It’s a memory that isn’t focused on a particular time or place, but rather one of long-term, collective trauma.
Perhaps the best defender of his generation, Thuram’s game was anchored by a unique and captivating combination of elegance and power that lifted him to soccer’s pinnacle. He won the World Cup, European Championship and Confederations Cup treble with France, earned the Bronze Ball at the 1998 World Cup and lifted trophies with Parma, Juventus and Barcelona.