Springbok captain Siya Kolisi will be flying the South African flag at the annual Laureus World Sports Awards in Monaco where he is vying for the Moment of the Year accolade.
South Africans have featured prominently at the Awards over the past few years with 400m world record holder Wayde van Niekerk and two-time Olympic champion Caster Semenya earning nominations in 2017 and 2018 respectively.
Van Niekerk narrowly missing out on winning the Sportsman of the Year prize to Usain Bolt in 2017 while Semenya lost out to Venus Williams, who was named Sportswoman of the Year for a record fifth time last year.
Kolisi made the three-man shortlist for the Moment of the Year where he will be going up against Scottish rugby legend Doddie Weir and Chinese double amputee mountaineer Xia Boyu.
“Thank you, South Africa, for voting for me and I will be in the top three all because of you guys. So thanks again for supporting me” Kolisi said.
Kolisi became the first black African to captain the Springboks in a Test, leading South Africa out against England at Ellis Park in June.
It was a momentous moment for both Kolisi and the country, as he wore the number-six jersey which former president Nelson Mandela famously wore at the 1995 World Cup final at Ellis Park.
Weir who suffers from a form of motor neuron disease, delivered the match ball in the Test between Scotland and New Zealand in November.
Boyu lost his feet after giving his sleeping bag to a sick teammate during a high-altitude storm in 1975.
The 69-year-old Boyu became only the second double amputee to scale Everest and the first ever from the Nepalese side.
The South African rugby captain will be rubbing shoulders with some of the world’s biggest sports stars at the annual Awards Ceremony.