Bogdan Bălan (born 11 February 1980 in

Brăila Brăila (, also , ) is a city in Muntenia, eastern Romania, a port on the Danube and the capital of Brăila County. The ''Sud-Est'' Regional Development Agency is located in Brăila. According to the 2011 Romanian census there were 180,302 pe ...

) is a

Romania Romania ( ; ro, România ) is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern, and Southeast Europe, Southeastern Europe. It borders Bulgaria to the south, Ukraine to the north, Hungary to the west, S ...

n former

rugby union Rugby union, commonly known simply as rugby, is a close-contact team sport that originated at Rugby School in the first half of the 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand. In its m ...

footballer who played as

prop A prop, formally known as (theatrical) property, is an object used on stage or screen by actors during a performance or screen production. In practical terms, a prop is considered to be anything movable or portable on a stage or a set, distinct ...

. Balan began his rugby career playing for Brăila in his home town. He then played for Timişoara, U Cluj and Bucharest Wolves. After that he moved to

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

and played for Bègles Bordeaux who were in Fédérale 1 at the time. He helped them get promoted to the

Pro D2 Rugby Pro D2, also known as Pro D2 is the second tier of rugby union club competition division in France. It is operated by Ligue Nationale de Rugby (LNR) which also runs the division directly above, the first division Top 14. Rugby Pro D2 was in ...

, and then joined

US Montauban US Montauban ( oc, Union Esportiva Montalban) is a French rugby union club that currently competes in Rugby Pro D2, the second level of the country's professional league system. They have also competed at the top level, Top 14, in the past, most ...

in 2005. Montauban was promoted from the Pro D2 to France's premier competition the Top 14 following Balan's first season with them. He also played for

Lyon Lyon,, ; Occitan: ''Lion'', hist. ''Lionés'' also spelled in English as Lyons, is the third-largest city and second-largest metropolitan area of France. It is located at the confluence of the rivers Rhône and Saône, to the northwest of t ...

, helping them win two

Rugby Pro D2 Rugby Pro D2, also known as Pro D2 is the second tier of rugby union club competition division in France. It is operated by Ligue Nationale de Rugby (LNR) which also runs the division directly above, the first division Top 14. Rugby Pro D2 was in ...

titles. Bălan was first selected for Romania in 2003 when he played against Georgia on 30 March that year. He has participated in the European Nations Cup, and in the

2007 Rugby World Cup The 2007 Rugby World Cup was the sixth Rugby World Cup, a quadrennial international rugby union competition inaugurated in 1987. Twenty nations competed for the Webb Ellis Cup in the tournament, which was hosted by France from 7 September to 2 ...

Honours

;Club ;Montauban :

(1): 2005–06 ;Lyon :

(2):

2010–11 1 (one, unit, unity) is a number representing a single or the only entity. 1 is also a numerical digit and represents a single unit of counting or measurement. For example, a line segment of ''unit length'' is a line segment of length 1. I ...

, 2013–14 ;International ;Romania : European Nations Cup (1): 2006

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Bălan, Bogdan 1980 births Living people Sportspeople from Brăila Romanian rugby union players Rugby union props SCM Rugby Timișoara players CS Universitatea Cluj-Napoca (rugby union) players Lyon OU players Romania international rugby union players Romanian expatriate rugby union players Expatriate rugby union players in France Romanian expatriate sportspeople in France US Montauban players CA Bordeaux-Bègles Gironde players