WWE legend Triple H sees his heart failure health scare as 'a gift'

Triple H sees his heart failure as "a gift".

The WWE boss - whose real name is Paul Levesque - has a defibrillator in his chest almost four years after a near death experience when he was suffering from viral pneumonia and a cardiac event, which was caused by a genetic issue and almost cost him his life.

In an interview with his wife Stephanie McMahon for her ESPN series 'Stephanie's Places', he said: "In this really weird, f***** up way, my heart issue was a gift. "It made me see things differently, look at life differently." Stephanie was visibly emotional as she admitted she'd "never heard" him say that before.

He explained: "You can go through life - no matter how great it is or all the things you're doing, and you're just doing it. "All of a sudden, you're partway through it, have a reset and go, 'Holy s***, this doesn't last forever.' " Levesque appeared emotional as Stephanie also fought back tears when he brought out a coin from his pocket. She was choked up as she told him: "I was just about to ask you about that." He said: "You gave it to me. Memento Mori. You can die at any second. This can all stop at any second. "Basically saying, don't get caught up in all these bulls***. Life is f****** fleeting, so it can all go away at any moment."

A few months after his hospitalisation, Levesque - who serves as WWE's chief content officer and leads their creative process across 'Monday Night Raw' and 'SmackDown' - confirmed he would never be getting back in the ring as he officially retired from in-ring competition.