Johannes Jacobus Strydom (13 July 1965 – 19 November 2023) was a South African rugby union player who played as a lock. He earned 21 caps for the South Africa national rugby union team between 1993 and 1997.[1]

Hannes Strydom
Birth nameJohannes Jacobus Strydom
Date of birth(1965-07-13)13 July 1965
Place of birthWelkom, Orange Free State, South Africa
Date of death19 November 2023(2023-11-19) (aged 58)
Place of deathMpumalanga, South Africa
Height1.99 m (6 ft 6 in)
Weight115 kg (254 lb)
SchoolPearson High School, Port Elizabeth
UniversityUniversity of Port Elizabeth
University of Pretoria
Rugby union career
Position(s) Lock
Provincial / State sides
Years Team Apps (Points)
1986–1988 Eastern Province 35 ()
1989–1992 Northern Transvaal 23 ()
1993–2000 Transvaal /Golden Lions 115 ()
Super Rugby
Years Team Apps (Points)
1998–1999 Cats ()
International career
Years Team Apps (Points)
1993–1997 South Africa 21 (5)

Strydom represented the Springboks for a total of 21 tests and 10 non-tests. He was also a member of the 1995 world cup winning team that won the finals defeating New Zealand.[2]

Early life

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Strydom was born on 13 July 1965 in Welkom, in the Free State province of South Africa.[3][4]

Career

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Provincial

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Strydom represented the Eastern Province Schools team at the 1983 and 1984 Craven Week tournaments. In 1986, he made his senior provincial debut for Eastern Province. He also represented Northern Transvaal and from 1993, Transvaal that later became the Golden Lions, where he formed a formidable combination with Kobus Wiese.

In Super Rugby, he represented the Gauteng Lions and with the establishment of the South African franchise system in 1998, the Cats.[5]

International

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Strydom played his first test match for the Springboks on 3 July 1993 against France at Ellis Park. He toured with the Springboks to Australia and Argentina in 1993, playing in all the test matches during the tours. In 1994 he played only one test match and in 1995 was a member of the World Cup squad and also played in the World Cup final.[6] Strydom was a member of the 1995 Springboks team that won the world cup that year defeating New Zealand. The famous tournament win was made into the Hollywood film, Invictus, in 2009.[7]

He continued to represent South Africa during the 1996 and 1997 seasons, including the test series against the 1997 British Lions. Strydom also played in nine tour matches.[6] In a career spanning 1993 through 1997, he made a total of 21 appearances for the country.[2]

World Cup

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Post-playing Career

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After his retirement, Strydom went on to become a businessman, owning the 'Pharma Valu' chain of pharmacies based in Pretoria.[8]

Accolades

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In 2003, he was inducted into the University of Pretoria Sports Hall of Fame.[9]

Personal life and death

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He went to school at Pearson High School in Port Elizabeth and the A rugby field is named after him.[10] He worked as a pharmacist in Pretoria.[8]

Hannes Strydom died in a traffic collision near EMalahleni, a town in the Mpumalanga province, on 19 November 2023, at the age of 58.[11][12][2]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "Johannes Jacobus Strydom". ESPN scrum. Retrieved 2 July 2020.
  2. ^ a b c "Hannes Strydom: Ex-South Africa rugby star dies in car crash". BBC News. 20 November 2023. Retrieved 20 November 2023.
  3. ^ "RIP Hannes Strydom (1965-2023)". SA Rugby. Retrieved 26 November 2023.
  4. ^ Visagie, Abigail (20 November 2023). "World Cup-winning Springbok Strydom dies in car accident". Bloemfontein Courant. Retrieved 26 November 2023.
  5. ^ Schoeman, Chris (2000). Who's who of South African rugby 2000 (5th ed.). Cape Town: Strobe Communications Pty (Ltd). p. 137. ISBN 0620261889.
  6. ^ a b Colquhoun, Andy (2005). South African Rugby Annual 2005. Cape Town: SA Rugby & MWP Media (Pty) Ltd. p. 508.
  7. ^ "South African rugby player Hannes Strydom killed in accident - fifth member of World Cup-winning team to die". Sky News. Retrieved 26 November 2023.
  8. ^ a b "Late Bok Strydom 'lived double-life'". SA Rugby magazine. 26 November 2023. Retrieved 26 November 2023.
  9. ^ "Hall of fame > University of Pretoria". Archived from the original on 1 October 2011. Retrieved 18 October 2011. Hall of fame Retrieved 25 June 2011
  10. ^ School, Pearson High. "Tour Pearson High School". tour.pearsonpga.tk. Archived from the original on 3 July 2020. Retrieved 2 July 2020.
  11. ^ Mostert, Herman. "1995 Springbok World Cup hero Hannes Strydom has died". Sport. Retrieved 20 November 2023.
  12. ^ Westhuyzen, Jacques van der (20 November 2023). "Springbok World Cup winner dies in car accident". The Citizen. Retrieved 20 November 2023.
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