Olivier Azam (born 21 October 1974 in

Tarbes Tarbes (; Gascon language, Gascon: ''Tarba'') is a Communes of France, commune in the Hautes-Pyrénées Departments of France, department in the Occitania (administrative region), Occitanie Regions of France, region of southwestern France. It is ...

) is a retired

French French may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France ** French people, a nation and ethnic group ** French cuisine, cooking traditions and practices Arts and media * The French (band), ...

rugby union Rugby union football, commonly known simply as rugby union in English-speaking countries and rugby 15/XV in non-English-speaking world, Anglophone Europe, or often just rugby, is a Contact sport#Terminology, close-contact team sport that orig ...

footballer. A hooker who could also cover prop, Azam spent most of his professional playing career in the English Premiership at

Gloucester Rugby Gloucester Rugby are a professional rugby union club based in the West Country city of Gloucester, England. They play in Premiership Rugby, England's top division of rugby. The club was formed in 1873 and since 1891 has played its home matches ...

. Azam also had 10 caps for

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

. Azam made his Gloucester debut in August 2000 against

Saracens file:Erhard Reuwich Sarazenen 1486.png, upright 1.5, Late 15th-century History of Germany, German woodcut depicting Saracens ''Saracen'' ( ) was a term used both in Greek language, Greek and Latin writings between the 5th and 15th centuries to ...

. During his first spell at Gloucester he started in the 2002 Zurich Championship Final (the year before winning the play-offs constituted winning the English title) in which Gloucester defeated

Bristol Rugby Bristol Bears (officially Bristol Rugby Club or Bristol Rugby) are a professional rugby union club based in Bristol, England. They play in Premiership Rugby, England's top division of rugby. The club was founded as Bristol Football Club in 18 ...

, as well as the 2003 Powergen Cup Final in which Gloucester defeated

Northampton Saints Northampton Saints (officially Northampton Rugby Football Club) is a professional rugby union club from Northampton, England. The club plays in Premiership Rugby, England's top division of rugby union. It was formed in 1880 as "Northampton St. ...

. Azam returned to

in the summer of 2004 after one year with French outfit Montferrand. He notched over 140 appearances for the West Country club. Renowned for his aggressive, hard hitting mentality, Azam had to compete with

Wallaby A wallaby () is a small or middle-sized Macropodidae, macropod native to Australia and New Guinea, with introduced populations in New Zealand, Hawaii, the United Kingdom and other countries. They belong to the same Taxonomy (biology), taxon ...

international Jeremy Paul and

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

international

Andy Titterrell Andrew James Titterrell (born 10 January 1981 in Dartford, England) is a former rugby union player who played at hooker and previously for England. Titterrell was educated at the Hugh Christie Technology College in Tonbridge and Sevenoaks Sch ...

for the No. 2 shirt upon his return. Azam was named the player of the season by Gloucester fans for the 2008/09 season. On 19 May 2011 Gloucester Rugby announced that Azam was leaving Gloucester. Shortly afterward, he chose to return to France to replace

Aubin Hueber Aubin Hueber (born 5 April 1967, in Tarbes) is a former French rugby union player and a current coach. He played for the French national team as a scrum half (1.75 m for 75 kg). From 2003 to 2006, he was a player-coach at the Rugby Club of Toulo ...

as forwards coach at Toulon. He left

Toulon Toulon (, , ; , , ) is a city in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region of southeastern France. Located on the French Riviera and the historical Provence, it is the prefecture of the Var (department), Var department. The Commune of Toulon h ...

in 2013 to become the new forwards coach for French side

Lyon Lyon (Franco-Provençal: ''Liyon'') is a city in France. It is located at the confluence of the rivers Rhône and Saône, to the northwest of the French Alps, southeast of Paris, north of Marseille, southwest of Geneva, Switzerland, north ...

, replacing Tom Smith. On 15 December 2014, it was announced Azam would become the Director of Sport for

Oyonnax Oyonnax () is the second most populated commune in the Ain department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region in eastern France. Oyonnax lies in a valley of the Jura Mountains in the far north of Ain. It is near the Parc naturel régional du Hau ...

from a three-year contract. Outside of sport, he runs a successful restaurant in

Cheltenham Cheltenham () is a historic spa town and borough adjacent to the Cotswolds in Gloucestershire, England. Cheltenham became known as a health and holiday spa town resort following the discovery of mineral springs in 1716, and claims to be the mo ...

called Armagnac.

References

External links

Gloucester Rugby profile
1974 births Rugby union players from Tarbes French rugby union players France international rugby union players Living people Rugby union hookers Gloucester Rugby players ASM Clermont Auvergne players RC Toulon coaches French expatriate rugby union players in England French rugby union coaches {{France-rugbyunion-bio-1970s-stub