Former Springbok captain Joost van der Westhuizen is “still fighting” for his life in hospital despite rumours on social media that he has died, his J9 Foundation said on Saturday afternoon.
The 45-year-old Van der Westhuizen was admitted to hospital earlier on Saturday, with the foundation stating that he was in a “critical condition”.
The former Bok scrumhalf has fighting Motor Neurone Disease (MND) since 2011, and has in recent times required an oxygen tank to help him breathe.
“Joost is still fighting in hospital everyone. Keep praying for him. Please follow only this page for updates, there are a lot of rumours. However, we will keep posting with the correct details,” the J9 Foundation posted on their Facebook page.
Van der Westhuizen’s estranged wife Amor Vittone, with whom he has two children, also took to social media to ask the public to pray for the legendary No 9.
“ Ek vra names die hele familie asb, om Joost in jul gebede te hou vandag. Ons almal is by mekaar vandag.
Joost ons is lief vir jou! (I ask on behalf of the entire family to please keep Joost in your prayers today. We are all together today. Joost, we love you!),” Vittone posted.
Earlier, the J9 Foundation informed the public that Van der Westhuizen, a world-renowned scrumhalf who played in 89 Tests and scored 38 tries for the Springboks, had been admitted to hospital.
“The family and friends of Joost ask that you all pray for Joost. He was taken to hospital earlier today and is in a critical condition,” the foundation posted on Facebook.
“We ask that you all please respect the family’s time at the moment. When we have updates, we will let you know. For now, we ask that we all bow our heads in prayer.”
The J9 Foundation recently denied reports that Van der Westhuizen needed an additional oxygen tank to breathe.
“Joost is still fighting strong‚ he uses oxygen as a support occasionally and is by no means reliant on it‚” the foundation said.
“What happens with MND is that the respiratory muscles become weak (as do all muscles) and due to this‚ patients sometimes need oxygen support as the breaths are smaller, thus less oxygen going through the body. Oxygen support then just helps bring the levels up again when they feel they need it.”
Van der Westhuizen was a crucial part of the Boks’ 1995 Rugby World Cup triumph on home soil, while he also captained the team at the 1999 edition, where South Africa went down in dramatic fashion to Australia24-21, courtesy of a Stephen Larkham drop goal in extra time.
The former Bulls stalwart retired in 2003 following his third and last World Cup.