Siyamthanda "Siya" Kolisi , (born 16 June 1991) is a South African professional

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 ...

player who currently captains the South Africa national team. Having formerly played for the and

Racing 92 Racing 92 () is a French professional rugby union club based in the Hauts-de-Seine department, Paris' western inner Banlieue, suburbs that competes in Top 14. The club plays its home matches at the 30,681-capacity Stadium#Types, domed stadium Pa ...

, he currently plays for

Sharks Sharks are a group of elasmobranch cartilaginous fish characterized by a ribless endoskeleton, dermal denticles, five to seven gill slits on each side, and pectoral fins that are not fused to the head. Modern sharks are classified within the ...

in the URC. He generally plays as a flanker and a loose forward. In 2018, Kolisi was appointed captain of the Springboks, becoming the first black man to hold the position and eventually leading the South African Rugby team to victory in the 2019 Rugby World Cup Final against

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 ...

, and again in the

2023 Rugby World Cup Final The 2023 Rugby World Cup final was a rugby union match played on 28 October 2023 at the Stade de France in Saint-Denis, Seine-Saint-Denis, Saint-Denis, France. It marked the culmination of the 2023 Rugby World Cup and was played between New Zeala ...

against

New Zealand New Zealand () is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and List of islands of New Zealand, over 600 smaller islands. It is the List of isla ...

. In December 2019, Kolisi was named in ''

New African ''New African'' is an English-language monthly news magazine based in London. Published since 1966, it is read by many people across the African continent and the African diaspora. It claims to be the oldest pan-African monthly in English, as well ...

'' magazine's list of 100 Most Influential Africans. In April 2023, Kolisi was bestowed the National Order of Ikhamanga by the South African Government for his contributions to rugby. In October 2023, Siya Kolisi captained South Africa to a historic fourth Rugby World Cup in Paris, France, and became only the second captain to win the title back-to-back. Kolisi is one of 44 players who have won the Rugby World Cup on multiple occasions and one of 25 South Africans to do so.

Early life

Kolisi grew up in Zwide, iBhayi, a township in

Port Elizabeth Gqeberha ( , ), formerly named Port Elizabeth, and colloquially referred to as P.E., is a major seaport and the most populous city in the Eastern Cape province of South Africa. It is the seat of the Nelson Mandela Bay Metropolitan Municipal ...

. Kolisi's mother, Phakama, was 16 when Siya was born and his father, Fezakele, was in his final year of school. Kolisi's mother died when he was 15, leaving his late grandmother, Nolulamile, to raise him. At the age of 12, he impressed scouts at a youth tournament in

Mossel Bay Mossel Bay () is a harbour town of about 170,000 people on the Garden Route of South Africa. It is an important tourism and farming region of the Western Cape Province. Mossel Bay lies 400 kilometres east of the country's seat of parliament, Ca ...

and was offered a scholarship at Grey Junior in Port Elizabeth. He was subsequently offered a rugby scholarship to

Grey High School Grey High School is a State school, semi-private English-medium high school (grades 8 to 12) for boys situated in the suburb of Mill Park in Gqeberha in the Eastern Cape province of South Africa. It is one of the top sporting schools in the coun ...

, which South African cricketer

Graeme Pollock Robert Graeme Pollock (born 27 February 1944) is a former cricketer for South African national cricket team, South Africa, Transvaal cricket team, Transvaal and Eastern Province cricket team, Eastern Province. A member of a famous cricketing fam ...

and England International

Mike Catt Michael John Catt OBE (born 17 September 1971) is a South African-born former rugby union player who played for the England national rugby union team. He played professionally for the clubs London Irish and Bath. He earned 75 international caps ...

had attended. Kolisi was a regular member of the first XV high school rugby team. He was also a part of the youth set-up between 2007 and 2009, playing in the Under-16 Grant Khomo week and the Under-18

Craven Week The Craven Week is an annual rugby union tournament organised for schoolboys in the Republic of South Africa. The tournament started in July 1964, and is named after the legendary Springbok rugby union player and coach Dr Danie Craven. The ...

before shifting west to join Western Province. He further represented the

South Africa national under-18 rugby union team The South African national under-18 rugby union team – often referred to as the South African Schools rugby union team – is the under-18 side of the South Africa national rugby union team. The team is selected every year at the conclusion of ...

(SA Schools team) for two consecutive years.

Club career

Kolisi made his senior debut for Western Province against the during the

2011 Vodacom Cup The 2011 Vodacom Cup was contested from 25 February to 13 May 2011. The tournament was the 14th edition of the Vodacom Cup, an annual domestic South African rugby union competition, and was played between the fourteen provincial teams in South ...

and later in the year several injuries and international call-ups gave him the opportunity to make regular starts in the

Currie Cup The Currie Cup () is South Africa's premier domestic rugby union competition featuring teams representing either entire provinces or substantial regions within provinces. Although it is the premier domestic competition, four South African franc ...

domestic rugby competition. He made 13 appearances and scored 4 tries during the campaign including a crucial score against bitter rivals the . 2012 saw Kolisi graduate to the Stormers squad and he made an immediate impact with 16 appearances during the

season A season is a division of the year based on changes in weather, ecology, and the number of daylight hours in a given region. On Earth, seasons are the result of the axial parallelism of Earth's axial tilt, tilted orbit around the Sun. In temperat ...

, scoring one try. The second half of the year was not so kind to him as a thumb injury restricted him to just one appearance in the

2012 Currie Cup 1 (one, unit, unity) is a number, numeral, and glyph. It is the first and smallest positive integer of the infinite sequence of natural numbers. This fundamental property has led to its unique uses in other fields, ranging from science to sp ...

and he had to watch on from the sidelines as Province lifted the trophy for their 33rd Currie Cup title. Kolisi returned with a bang the following year and held his place in the Stormers side despite fierce competition among the loose forwards. 13 appearances and 2 tries were recorded and this earned him his first international recognition. Being part of the

Springbok The springbok or springbuck (''Antidorcas marsupialis'') is an antelope found mainly in south and southwest Africa. The sole member of the genus (biology), genus ''Antidorcas'', this bovid was first Species description, described by the Germa ...

set-up for the

2013 Rugby Championship The 2013 The Rugby Championship, Rugby Championship, known as ''The SABMiller brands#Castle brewery, Castle Rugby Championship'' in South Africa, ''The Investec Bank, Investec Rugby Championship'' in New Zealand, ''The Castrol#Products, Castrol Ed ...

meant he only played in Western Province's final 3 matches of the

2013 Currie Cup Thirteen or 13 may refer to: * 13 (number) * Any of the years 13 BC, AD 13, 1913, or 2013 Music Albums * ''13'' (Black Sabbath album), 2013 * ''13'' (Blur album), 1999 * ''13'' (Borgeous album), 2016 * ''13'' (Brian Setzer album), 2006 * ...

and was powerless to prevent them from slipping to a surprise 33–19 home defeat to the in the final of the competition. Kolisi was selected as the new captain of the Stormers on 20 February 2017. He was selected as the new captain of the Springboks on 28 May 2018, becoming the team's first black captain in its 126-year history. Bryan Habana, former Springbok and of mixed race, praised Kolisi's appointment: "It's a monumental moment for South African rugby, and a moment in South African history." Kolisi was on the board of directors of MyPlayers Rugby, which is the players' organisation of all the professional rugby players in South Africa. Kolisi signed for the Sharks in February 2021 following the successful majority share purchase of the Sharks by MVM Holidings. Kolisi signed for

Top 14 The Top 14 () is a professional rugby union club competition that is played in France. Created in 1892, the Top 14 is at the top of the national league system operated by the National Rugby League (France), France National Rugby League, also ...

side

in January 2023, joining them after the

World Cup A world cup is a global sporting competition in which the participant entities – usually international teams or individuals representing their countries – compete for the title of world champion. The event most associated with the name is ...

later that year. Kolisi rejoined the Sharks, his contract with Racing 92 was due to run out in 2026 but the French club agreed to terminate it early after only one season.

International career

Kolisi was a member of the South Africa under 20 side that competed in both the

2010 The year saw a multitude of natural and environmental disasters such as the 2010 Haiti earthquake, the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, and the 2010 Chile earthquake. The 2009 swine flu pandemic, swine flu pandemic which began the previous year ...

and

2011 IRB Junior World Championship The 2011 IRB Junior World Championship was the fourth annual international rugby union competition for Under 20 national teams, this competition replaced the now defunct under 19 and under 21 world championships. The event was organised by rugby' ...

s. Kolisi made his national team debut as Springbok 851 on 15 June 2013 against at the

Mbombela Stadium The Mbombela Stadium is a association football, football and Rugby union all-seater stadium in Mbombela in the Mpumalanga province of South Africa. It was one of 10 venues for the 2010 FIFA World Cup and one of 5 newly constructed stadiums for th ...

Nelspruit Mbombela, formerly Nelspruit, is a city in northeastern South Africa. It is the capital of the Mpumalanga province. Located on the Crocodile River, the city lies about by road west of the Mozambique border, east of Johannesburg and north of ...

. He replaced the injured Arno Botha in the 5th minute and was named as Man of the Match as South Africa won 30–17. Nine further substitute appearances followed during the 2013 international season as he firmly established himself as a regular member of the national squad. Kolisi also played two matches for South Africa in the

2015 Rugby World Cup The IRB 2015 Rugby World Cup was the eighth Rugby World Cup, the quadrennial rugby union world championship. The tournament was hosted by England from 18 September to 31 October. Of the 20 countries competing in the World Cup in 2011, there was ...

against Japan and Samoa. Kolisi became the first ever black player to lead the Springboks in a Test match in the match against England at Ellis Park on 9 June 2018. He captained the South African team at the

2019 Rugby World Cup The 2019 Rugby World Cup () was the ninth edition of the Rugby World Cup, the quadrennial world championship for men's rugby union teams. It was hosted in Japan from 20 September to 2 November in 12 venues all across the country. The opening matc ...

tournament in

Yokohama is the List of cities in Japan, second-largest city in Japan by population as well as by area, and the country's most populous Municipalities of Japan, municipality. It is the capital and most populous city in Kanagawa Prefecture, with a popu ...

Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...

, defeating England 32–12 in the

final Final, Finals or The Final may refer to: *Final examination or finals, a test given at the end of a course of study or training *Final (competition), the last or championship round of a sporting competition, match, game, or other contest which d ...

to lift the

Webb Ellis Cup The Webb Ellis Cup is the trophy awarded to the winner of the men's Rugby World Cup, the premier competition in men's international rugby union. The Cup is named after William Webb Ellis, who is often credited as being the inventor of rugby foot ...

. This was South Africa's third World Cup win, tying with

. In 2019, Siya Kolisi became the first black captain of a World Cup-winning side. The

2021 British & Irish Lions tour to South Africa The 2021 British & Irish Lions tour to South Africa was an international rugby union tour that took place in South Africa in July and August 2021. The British & Irish Lions, a team selected from players eligible to represent England national rugb ...

was already on the cards for following the success of the

in Japan. However the global impact of

Covid-19 Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by the coronavirus SARS-CoV-2. In January 2020, the disease spread worldwide, resulting in the COVID-19 pandemic. The symptoms of COVID‑19 can vary but often include fever ...

and the imposed lock-downs, made it impossible for fans to attend the games at the various stadia in South Africa. The tour was eventually agreed to still be staged and was broadcast world over reaching unprecedented viewership highs. There was doubt that the South Africans would be worthy challengers to the touring party due to no rugby being played by them in 2020. Siya Kolisi as captain, led his team, who seemed unfazed by the lost year and emulated the previous

2007 Rugby World Cup The 2007 Rugby World Cup () was the sixth Rugby World Cup, a quadrennial international rugby union competition organised by the International Rugby Board. Twenty nations competed for the Webb Ellis Cup in the tournament, which was hosted by F ...

winning side by beating the Lions two matches to one in series. And just like in

2009 British & Irish Lions tour to South Africa The 2009 British & Irish Lions tour to South Africa was an international rugby union tour which took place in South Africa from May to July 2009. The British & Irish Lions played a three-match Test series against South Africa, with matches in ...

, the final kick to clinch the series was another long range penalty by the ice-cool Morne Steyn, who with Frans Steyn (who was in the squad but didn't play) have now won an unprecedented second Lions tour on home soil. He again captained the South African team at the

2023 Rugby World Cup The 2023 Rugby World Cup () was the tenth men's Rugby World Cup, the quadrennial world championship for national rugby union teams. It took place in France from 8 September to 28 October 2023 in nine venues across the country. The opening game ...

tournament in

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

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 ...

, defeating the old foe, the valiant All Blacks 12–11 in the

to lift the

. Kolisi accredited the campaign outcome to the team and the coaches for the super work done and thanks the departing Jacques Nienaber in a powerful three minute speech that left he world agog. Going into the final, there was no doubt that whoever wins, shall be the undisputed leader in rugby, with this team having the opportunity to match the New Zealand team of 2011 and 2015 by winning back to back world cups and further to that the winning nation shall be first to an incredible and unprecedented fourth World Cup title. With the eventual and epic win, South Africa equally the back-to-back record win set my the New Zealand team of 2011 and 2015 rugby world cups, however the cherry on top was the South Africans became the first nation to a fourth World Cup win, leaving

as the only nation at three world cups. Thus in 2023, Siya Kolisi became the first South Africa captain to lift the Webb Ellis trophy twice and matched Richie McCaw of New Zealand, to being the only two winning captains of all time to lead their nations triumphantly in successive Rugby World Cup campaigns.

Captaincy achievements

Siya Kolisi has become the most decorated South African Captain, having won two World Cups back to back in 2019 Japan and 2023 France (equaling the New Zealand team led by

Richie McCaw Richard Hugh McCaw (born 31 December 1980) is a retired New Zealand professional rugby union player. He captain (sports), captained the New Zealand national rugby union team, New Zealand national team, the All Blacks, in 110 out of his 148 t ...

, who also won back to back world cups in 2011 and 2015) as captain. Further to that, he now stands alone as the only Springboks Captain to have led South Africa to four consecutive wins against the mighty All Blacks. Prior to that he shared the record with former Captain's John Smit (2007) and

Felix du Plessis Felix du Plessis (24 November 1919 – 1 May 1978) was a South African rugby union footballer and captain of the South Africa (Springbok) team that in 1949 beat the All Blacks thrice in succession, a feat that was not repeated by a South Africa ...

(1949). He also has now won as captain, the most trophies in one year (2024) than any other Springboks Captain before him. The Qatar Airways Cup, The Mandela Challenge Plate, The Freedom Cup,

The Rugby Championship The Rugby Championship, formerly known as the Tri Nations Series (1996–2011), is an international rugby union competition contested annually by Argentina, Australia, New Zealand, and South Africa. These are traditionally the four highest ran ...

and The Prince William Cup. It is also under his Captaincy that South Africa hold not only the World Cup consecutively, but also led his charges to win the

British & Irish Lions The British & Irish Lions is a rugby union team selected from players eligible for the national teams of England national rugby union team, England, Ireland national rugby union team, Ireland, Scotland national rugby union team, Scotland, and ...

Series in 2021, held in South Africa, a feat that

could not achieve with

Kieran Read Kieran James Read (born 26 October 1985) is a New Zealand former rugby union player. He played as a number 8 and is a former captain of the New Zealand national team, the All Blacks. Read played for New Zealand from 2008 to 2019. He is one of ...

leading the All Blacks in the

2017 British & Irish Lions tour to New Zealand The British & Irish Lions toured New Zealand during June and July 2017. The Lions, a rugby union team selected from players eligible to represent England national rugby union team, England, Ireland national rugby union team, Ireland, Scotland na ...

, which ended up being tied.

Personal life

Kolisi married Rachel Smith in 2016 and they have two children together: son Nicholas Siyamthanda (born 2014) and daughter Keziah (born 2017). Since 2014 Siya's half-siblings, Liyema and Liphelo, children of Siya's mother who died in 2009, have been part of the Kolisi household, after five years in orphanages and foster care in

. Rachel, one year older than Siya, is from

Grahamstown Makhanda, formerly known as Grahamstown, is a town of about 75,000 people in the Eastern Cape province of South Africa. It is situated about northeast of Gqeberha and southwest of East London. It is the largest town in the Makana Local Mun ...

and worked in event management before taking on duties as a full-time mother. Kolisi was also the brother-in-law of South Africa's most decorated female swimmer Tatjana Smith, who is married to Rachel's brother Joel Smith.McKay, Joel (1 March 2023)
"Tatjana Schoenmaker Confirms relationship with Rachel Kolisi's brother Joel Smith"
'' News24'' Retrieved 14 April 2023. Kolisi is a

Christian A Christian () is a person who follows or adheres to Christianity, a Monotheism, monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus in Christianity, Jesus Christ. Christians form the largest religious community in the wo ...

and a fan of English football club

Liverpool F.C. Liverpool Football Club is a professional Football club (association football), football club based in Liverpool, England. The club competes in the Premier League, the top tier of English football league system, English football. Founded in ...

His alma mater

renamed its first XV rugby field as ''The Kolisi Field'' in 2022, in celebration of its most famous past pupil. On 22 October 2024, Kolisi and his wife issued a heartfelt joint statement on Instagram to announce their decision to end their marriage. They stated their intention to remain friends while putting their children first and working together on their foundation.

Philanthropy

In response to the

COVID-19 pandemic in South Africa The COVID-19 pandemic in South Africa was part of the pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). On 5 March 2020, Minister of Health Zweli Mkhize had confirme ...

, Kolisi and his wife launched The Kolisi Foundation in 2020. The foundation aims to change the narratives of inequality in South Africa. The focus areas of the Kolisi Foundation address the systemic issues in Gender-Based Violence, Food Insecurity and Education and Sport, with special attention paid to Zwide township where Kolisi grew up, and other under-resourced areas of South Africa. Kolisi, with his friend,

cricket Cricket is a Bat-and-ball games, bat-and-ball game played between two Sports team, teams of eleven players on a cricket field, field, at the centre of which is a cricket pitch, pitch with a wicket at each end, each comprising two Bail (cr ...

Faf du Plessis François "Faf" du Plessis ( ; born 13 July 1984) is a South African professional cricketer and former captain of the South Africa national cricket team. He is considered one of the greatest fielders of all time and among the best all-format ...

, donated food parcels to the community street feeding scheme in

Bonteheuwel Bonteheuwel is a former Coloured township in Cape Town in the Western Cape province of South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. Its Provinces of So ...

during the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...

in 2020. In July 2020, Kolisi was named a UN Global Advocate for the Spotlight Initiative to eliminate violence against women and girls.

Honours

International

* 2023 Qatar Airways Cup: **Winning Captain:

2023 Catastrophic natural disasters in 2023 included the Lists of 21st-century earthquakes, 5th-deadliest earthquake of the 21st century 2023 Turkey–Syria earthquakes, striking Turkey and Syria, leaving up to 62,000 people dead; Cyclone Freddy ...

* Prince William Cup: **Winner (1):

2013 2013 was the first year since 1987 to contain four unique digits (a span of 26 years). 2013 was designated as: *International Year of Water Cooperation *International Year of Quinoa Events January * January 5 – 2013 Craig, Alask ...

**Winning Captain:

2021 Like the year 2020, 2021 was also heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, due to the emergence of multiple Variants of SARS-CoV-2, COVID-19 variants. The major global rollout of COVID-19 vaccines, which began at the end of 2020, continued ...

**Winning Captain:

2022 The year began with another wave in the COVID-19 pandemic, with SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variant, Omicron spreading rapidly and becoming the dominant variant of the SARS-CoV-2 virus worldwide. Tracking a decrease in cases and deaths, 2022 saw ...

**Winning Captain:

2024 The year saw the list of ongoing armed conflicts, continuation of major armed conflicts, including the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the Myanmar civil war (2021–present), Myanmar civil war, the Sudanese civil war (2023–present), Sudane ...

* Mandela Challenge Plate: **Winner:

**Winning Captain:

* Freedom Cup: **Winning Captain:

: **Winning Captain:

2019 This was the year in which the first known human case of COVID-19 was documented, preceding COVID-19 pandemic, the pandemic which was declared by the World Health Organization the following year. Up to that point, 2019 had been described as ...

**Winning Captain:

: **Bronze Medalist:

2015 2015 was designated by the United Nations as: * International Year of Light * International Year of Soil __TOC__ Events January * January 1 – Lithuania officially adopts the euro as its currency, replacing the litas, and becomes ...

**Winning Captain:

Statistics

Test Match Record

Pld = Games Played, W = Games Won, D = Games Drawn, L = Games Lost, Tri = Tries Scored, Pts = Points Scored

International Tries

Super Rugby statistics

Bibliography

* Jeremy Daniel, ''Siya Kolisi: Against All Odds'', Jonathan Ball Publishers, 2018, * Siya Kolisi, ''Rise: The Brand New Autobiography'',

HarperCollins HarperCollins Publishers LLC is a British–American publishing company that is considered to be one of the "Big Five (publishers), Big Five" English-language publishers, along with Penguin Random House, Hachette Book Group USA, Hachette, Macmi ...

, 2021,

Sunday Times ''The Sunday Times'' is a British Sunday newspaper whose circulation makes it the largest in Britain's quality press market category. It was founded in 1821 as ''The New Observer''. It is published by Times Newspapers Ltd, a subsidiary of N ...

''Siya Kolisi: ‘Through my own rise, I hope I can show people anything is possible’

/ref>

References

External links

Siya Kolisi
at South Africa national rugby union team, Springboks *
Kolisis Foundation
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Kolisi, Siya 1991 births Living people Rugby union players from Gqeberha Xhosa people South African rugby union players Stormers players Western Province (rugby union) players Rugby union flankers South Africa international rugby union players South Africa Under-20 international rugby union players Alumni of Grey High School South Africa national rugby union team captains South African Christians Sharks (rugby union) players Sharks (Currie Cup) players Racing 92 players Recipients of the Order of Ikhamanga 2015 Rugby World Cup players 2019 Rugby World Cup players 2023 Rugby World Cup players South African expatriate rugby union players in France 21st-century South African sportsmen