Wynand Claassen (born 16 January 1951, in Schweizer-Reneke) is a former South African

rugby Rugby may refer to: Sport * Rugby football in many forms: ** Rugby league: 13 players per side *** Masters Rugby League *** Mod league *** Rugby league nines *** Rugby league sevens *** Touch (sport) *** Wheelchair rugby league ** Rugby union: 1 ...

player and

Springbok The springbok (''Antidorcas marsupialis'') is a medium-sized antelope found mainly in south and southwest Africa. The sole member of the genus ''Antidorcas'', this bovid was first described by the German zoologist Eberhard August Wilhelm v ...

captain.

Playing career

He was selected as eighth-man for

Northern Transvaal Northern may refer to the following: Geography * North, a point in direction * Northern Europe, the northern part or region of Europe * Northern Highland, a region of Wisconsin, United States * Northern Province, Sri Lanka * Northern Range, a r ...

whilst studying architecture at the

University of Pretoria The University of Pretoria ( af, Universiteit van Pretoria, nso, Yunibesithi ya Pretoria) is a multi-campus public university, public research university in Pretoria, the administrative and de facto capital of South Africa. The university was ...

in the late 1970s. He formed a loose-trio with

Thys Lourens Matthys Johannes 'Thys' Lourens (born 15 May 1943) is a former South African rugby union Rugby player. Playing career Lourens played 168 first class provincial matches for Northern Transvaal, 91 of which were in the Currie Cup competition. H ...

and Burger Geldenhuys and soon had two

Currie Cup The Currie Cup is South Africa's premier domestic rugby union competition, played each winter and spring (June to October), featuring teams representing either entire provinces or substantial regions within provinces. Although it is the premier ...

final victories, in

1975 It was also declared the ''International Women's Year'' by the United Nations and the European Architectural Heritage Year by the Council of Europe. Events January * January 1 - Watergate scandal (United States): John N. Mitchell, H. R. ...

and

1977 Events January * January 8 – Three bombs explode in Moscow within 37 minutes, killing seven. The bombings are attributed to an Armenian separatist group. * January 10 – Mount Nyiragongo erupts in eastern Zaire (now the Democratic R ...

. In 1980 he moved to

Natal NATAL or Natal may refer to: Places * Natal, Rio Grande do Norte, a city in Brazil * Natal, South Africa (disambiguation), a region in South Africa ** Natalia Republic, a former country (1839–1843) ** Colony of Natal, a former British colony ( ...

and was selected for the Springboks in 1981, captaining the team on his debut against

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...

. Despite Natal's relegation to the Currie Cup B section at the end of 1981 he continued as Springbok captain until 1984. He played seven test matches for the Springboks, all as captain and also played in six tour matches, scoring two tries. Claassen is credited with reviving rugby at the

University of Natal The University of Natal was a university in the former South African province Natal which later became KwaZulu-Natal. The University of Natal no longer exists as a distinct legal entity, as it was incorporated into the University of KwaZulu-N ...

, both as a player and later as a coach. In 1988 he coached the Durban campus of the

to the Moor Cup title.

Test history

Springbok captain

In 1981 he earned international acclaim as captain during the infamous "Rebel Tour" in New Zealand.

Political influence in South African Rugby

Since retiring from the sport, he has maintained an active role in South African Rugby across the spectrum. He is often invited to the Captain's Table at various fund raising events. He has also earned great respect through his active involvement along with other Springbok captains supporting AfriForum's memorandum against political interference and racial discrimination in rugby. On 12 August 2008, Wynand Claassen and a delegation of former Springbok captains met with the South African Rugby Union as part of their campaign to express concerns and lobby against the use of race to determine team selection. In this meeting they expressed their intent to send a memorandum to the

International Rugby Board World Rugby is the world governing body for the sport of rugby union. World Rugby organises the Rugby World Cup every four years, the sport's most recognised and most profitable competition. It also organises a number of other international rug ...

. They assert that racial discrimination in sport and team selection is in conflict with international sporting regulations.

Autobiography

His autobiography, "More Than Just Rugby" was published in 1985.

Social Appearances

Wynand Claassen was an honorary host on the Amabokoboko Blue Train which departed in June 2009 on a rare and distinguished journey from Pretoria. He played host to exclusive guests en route to watch the ''Springboks'' vs the ''

British & Irish Lions The British & Irish Lions is a rugby union team selected from players eligible for the national teams of England, Ireland, Scotland, and Wales. The Lions are a test side and most often select players who have already played for their national ...

'' in their first test match in Durban.

Architect

Claassen is also an architecture graduate and occasional artist. In a ''

Sunday Times ''The Sunday Times'' is a British 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 News UK, whi ...

'' interview with

Jani Allan Jani Allan (born 11 September 1952) is a South African journalist, columnist, writer and broadcaster. She became one of the country's first media celebrities in the 1980s and 1990s. In 1980, Allan became a columnist for the centrist newspaper, ...

he described his passion for architecture: "I'm very interested in old architecture - I think it's a great pity that beautiful buildings that are part of our heritage are torn down to make way for great glass boxes." A self-portrait also accompanied the column.

Personal

His father was George Claassen, a schoolmaster from Middelburg Hoërskool and winner of the 1961

Comrades Marathon The Comrades Marathon is an ultramarathon of approximately which is run annually in the KwaZulu-Natal province of South Africa between the cities of Durban and Pietermaritzburg. It is the world's largest and oldest ultramarathon race. The direc ...

between

Pietermaritzburg Pietermaritzburg (; Zulu: umGungundlovu) is the capital and second-largest city in the province of KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. It was founded in 1838 and is currently governed by the Msunduzi Local Municipality. Its Zulu name umGungundlovu ...

and

Durban Durban ( ) ( zu, eThekwini, from meaning 'the port' also called zu, eZibubulungwini for the mountain range that terminates in the area), nicknamed ''Durbs'',Ishani ChettyCity nicknames in SA and across the worldArticle on ''news24.com'' from ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Claassen, Wynand 1951 births Living people People from Schweizer-Reneke Afrikaner people Blue Bulls players Sharks (Currie Cup) players South African rugby union players South Africa international rugby union players University of Pretoria alumni South Africa national rugby union team captains Rugby union number eights Rugby union players from North West (South African province)