National Team
The Namibian national team are commonly known as the Welwitschia.
Until independence, players for Namibia were also eligible to represent South Africa with Namibian-born Springboks including Jan Ellis and Percy Montgomery (although in the latter case, his birthplace Walvis Bay was an exclave of South Africa until 1994). Various players pursue their rugby careers in South Africa and in a number of European countries. Frik du Preez, the South African player, also lived in the former SWA for a while.
Namibia's players are notable for their other professions. For example:
- Rudi van Vuuren is also a World Cup cricketer for Namibia and a doctor. He is best known for representing his country in both the 2003 Cricket World Cup and the 2003 Rugby Union World Cup; as a result he became the first man to compete in the final stages of world-cup competitions in cricket and rugby union in the same year.
- Schalk van der Merwe also got some press attention as he is a part-time animal tamer, and works regularly with lions.
- Bratley Langenhoven, who plays for German champions SC 1880 Frankfurt
- Marius Visser, the heaviest player in the 2007 Rugby World Cup, at 140 kilogrammes.
Read more about this topic: Rugby Union In Namibia
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