Sébastien Viars (born 24 June 1971) is a former French rugby union footballer. He was nicknamed "The Compass". He played as a centre and as a wing.

Club career

Viars was born at

Aurillac Aurillac (; ) is the prefecture of the Cantal department, in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region of France. Geography Aurillac is at above sea level and located at the foot of the Cantal mountains in a small sedimentary basin. The city is b ...

. He played at

Stade Aurillacois Stade Aurillacois Cantal Auvergne (commonly known as Aurillac) is a French professional rugby union club that was founded in 1904 and currently play in the Pro D2, the second division of French rugby. Aurillac`s home matches are mostly played at ...

(1989/90-1991/92),

CA Brive Club Athlétique Brive Corrèze Limousin, also referred to as CA Brive, Brive () or CAB, is a French professional rugby union club based in Brive-la-Gaillarde, in the Corrèze, Corrèze department. Brive is a historical member of French rugby un ...

(1992/93-1997/98), where he won the Cup of France, in 1995/96,

Stade français Paris Stade (; ), officially the Hanseatic City of Stade (, ) is a city in Lower Saxony in northern Germany. First mentioned in records in 934, it is the seat of the Stade (district), district () which bears its name. It is located roughly to the wes ...

(1998/99), winning once more the Cup of France, and

ASM Clermont Association Sportive Montferrandaise Clermont Auvergne () is a French professional rugby union club from Clermont-Ferrand in Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes that currently competes in Top 14, the top level of the Ligue Nationale de Rugby, French league s ...

(1999/2000-2005/06), where he would finish his career. He won the

Heineken Cup The European Rugby Champions Cup (known as the Investec Champions Cup for sponsorship reasons) is an annual rugby union tournament organised by European Professional Club Rugby (EPCR). It is the top-tier competition for clubs who compete in a pre ...

, in 1997, with

, scoring an anthological try in the 28–9 win over

Leicester Tigers Leicester Tigers (officially Leicester Football Club) are a professional rugby union club based in Leicester, England. They play in Premiership Rugby, England's top division of rugby. The club was founded in 1880 and since 1892 plays its home ...

, from England.

International career

Even in a short international career, he's usually considered one of the best French players of his generation. Viars held 17 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 ...

, from 1992 to 1997, scoring 9 tries, 17 penalties and 17 conversions, 127 points in aggregate. He played two times at the Five Nations, in 1992 and 1995, scoring 4 tries, 6 conversions and 4 penalties, 41 points in aggregate. He scored a record of 26 points, 2 tries, 5 conversions and 2 penalties, in the 44–12 win over

Ireland Ireland (, ; ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe. Geopolitically, the island is divided between the Republic of Ireland (officially Names of the Irish state, named Irelan ...

, at 21 March 1992. He was also one of the top try scorers of the competition with 3 tries. He was mentioned in the

Guinness Book of Records ''Guinness World Records'', known from its inception in 1955 until 1999 as ''The Guinness Book of Records'' and in previous United States editions as ''The Guinness Book of World Records'', is a British reference book published annually, listi ...

for 1992, for his points record in a single game. Viars was selected for the

1995 Rugby World Cup The 1995 Rugby World Cup (), was the third Rugby World Cup. It was hosted and won by South Africa, and was the first Rugby World Cup in which every match was held in one country. The World Cup was the first major sporting event to take place in ...

finals, playing a single game, in the 54–18 win over

Côte d'Ivoire Ivory Coast, also known as Côte d'Ivoire and officially the Republic of Côte d'Ivoire, is a country on the southern coast of West Africa. Its capital city of Yamoussoukro is located in the centre of the country, while its largest city and ...

and scoring a try. Viars wasn't called again for the National Team since 1997, when he was only 26 years old.Sébastien Viars International Statistics
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References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Viars, Sebastien 1971 births Living people Sportspeople from Aurillac Rugby union players from Cantal French rugby union players France international rugby union players Rugby union centres Rugby union wings Stade Français Paris players CA Brive players ASM Clermont Auvergne players 1995 Rugby World Cup players