Former Springbok lock Kobus Wiese suffers heart attack - reports

Former Springbok lock Kobus Wiese has had a successful broadcasting career. Picture: Gerhard Duraan/BackpagePix

Former Springbok lock Kobus Wiese has had a successful broadcasting career. Picture: Gerhard Duraan/BackpagePix

Published Apr 8, 2021

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DURBAN - Former Springbok lock and popular television presenter Kobus Wiese is in hospital recovering from a massive heart attack, according to a radio report this morning.

Sports radio presenter John Walland of HOT 91.9FM in Johannesburg said the 56-year-old Wiese had been rushed to Panorama Clinic in Cape Town and is being closely monitored.

ALSO READ: The Glory of '95: 'Vasbyt, adrenalin and stupidity' help Boks beat France

The massively built Wiese played 18 Tests for the Boks in the ‘90s and was a key member of the World Cup-winning team of 1995.

The 2m tall former Transvaal stalwart weighed 125kgs in his prime and has continued to grow into a giant of a man. After retiring from rugby in 1997 after 128 games for his beloved Transvaal, Wiese has been a popular anchor for SuperSport on their rugby shows and on game days

ALSO READ: The Glory of '95: 9 moments that defined the 1995 Rugby World Cup

The ’95 World Cup team has been plagued by tragedy. Flanker Ruben Kruger died in 2010 after a long struggle with a brain tumour; scrumhalf Joost van der Westhuizen died of Motor Neuron Disease in 2017; right wing James Small died two years ago following a heart attack; and Chester Williams, the left wing in the World Cup final defeat of the All Blacks, also died of a heart attack in 2019, just two months after Small’s death.

Wiese was a pugnacious lock who took no prisoners in the loose and was a reliable No 2 jumper for the Boks and the Transvaal team that won the Super 10 in 1993 and the Currie Cup in 1993 and 1994.

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