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Siya Kolisi will tick off the latest major accomplishment of his glittering career this weekend as he wins his 100th cap for South Africa. The Springboks captain will bring up a century of appearances for his country against France in Paris on Saturday, becoming the ninth South African player to do so. Having made his debut in 2013, Kolisi has gone on to become one of the most well-respected and decorated players in international rugby. In 2023, he became only the second player ever to win back-to-back World Cups as captain after All Blacks legend Richie McCaw, having lifted the Webb Ellis Cup for the first time in Tokyo four years earlier. On his way to becoming a centurion, he has also led his country to a series victory over the British & Irish Lions and three Rugby Championship titles. The Sharks back-rower is not just a global icon for his achievements in rugby, however, with his actions off the pitch - including fighting societal issues like gender-based violence and racial prejudice - making him a role model to millions around the world. What makes Kolisi's many achievements all the more impressive is they have come as he has fought his own personal battles, having nearly lost it all in a long-standing battle with alcohol before going through a heartbreaking divorce from his wife. In what has proven to be a testament to his resilience and strength, here's what you might not know about Test rugby's newest centurion. Kolisi's rise to the top of world rugby came as he battled alcoholism, with a troubled childhood leading him to try and find an escape in the form of binge drinking, as well as strip clubs and pornography. Having started drinking aged just 10, the Springboks star revealed in his autobiography Rise how an addiction to alcohol very nearly saw him lose his family as he struggled to cope with not being a regular starter in the Springboks team during the 2015 Rugby World Cup . "Whenever I had time off, I just drank," he wrote. "I was bored and feeling sorry for myself, there were other guys around in the same boat who were always happy to hang out, and it was all too easy for me to hit the bars and pubs and be a good-time guy. "Rachel [my wife] had come out with baby Nick, and this would have been the perfect opportunity to spend some time with them; but no, I preferred to be out with the boys. It was an awful time for her, and I was too selfish to realise. In the end Rachel got fed up with me being a jerk and flew home a week early." "The trajectory of my life was bad. I had to stop behaving like this or else I'd lose my family," he added. "It wasn't 'stop drinking', because drinking would have been fine if I'd just had a couple of beers and stopped there. It was 'stop drinking until you're obliterated, each and every time' "Because that's what I was. Whenever I opened a drink it was as though there was a message at the bottom of the bottle saying 'drink me, keep on going'. I'd binge and not remember what had happened the night before." While he has gained a reputation as one of the most good-natured figures in global sport, Kolisi admitted in an interview with the Guardian that he was "not a saint at all", rather a "sinner trying to be the best he can be every day". "I drank when I was happy or sad, or dealing with something," he explained. "Drinking was the only way I knew to get through this stuff. Let’s say I’m someone’s role model. The kid will think: ‘I want to be like you one day.’ But he doesn’t know the struggles you face. No one tells him there’s temptation – alcohol, drugs, all these things are available to you "I wish I’d had a mentor that told me you’re going to face these challenges and you must be prepared to fight them. I had to go through the hard way. Now I want to make sure the next kid and his family can read the book and think: ‘How will we prevent that? How will we prepare you for that kind of life?" However, Kolisi was saved from his downward spiral just months before leading the Springboks to glory at the 2019 Rugby World Cup, as his wife Rachel made a crucial intervention and persuaded him to find a Christian mentor, who "exposed [his] sin". Recalling the guidance he received, Kolisi said: "[He said] Siya, you drink a lot, you fool around with women, you go to strip clubs. You post on social media about your faith in Christ, but you’re lying to yourself and everyone else. I started opening up to him and we spoke deeply. He told me I needed to stop drinking. It was tough at the beginning but now I don’t miss it." Last year, South Africans were left in shock when Kolisi announced that he and Rachel were divorcing after more than a decade together. The celebrated pair were one of the country's most popular power couples, having publicly shown their love for each other and given insights into their family life. However, in October last year, they released a joint statement on Instagram, saying they had made the joint decision to go their separate ways after eight years of marriage. They had dated for four years prior to tying the knot and have two children together, while they also adopted Kolisi's younger siblings after his mother died in 2009. "We wanted to share some important news with you," the statement read. "After much reflection and open conversations, we have mutually decided to end our marriage. This decision comes from a place of love, respect, and understanding that this is the best path forward for both of us. "While our relationship as a couple is changing, we remain great friends and committed partners in raising our children with the same love and care they’ve always known. We will also continue working together on the Foundation that means so much to us. "We are grateful for the love, understanding, and support you’ve shown us, and we kindly ask for your respect as we navigate this transition," the couple added. "With gratitude and love, Siya and Rachel." The sad split came over a year after a documentary about Kolisi saw Rachel admit to being "ready for a divorce" as the rugby star's past wild behaviour and struggles with alcohol put strain on their marriage. "It’s like there were two other people," she said. "It was Siya, and then there was a horrible Siya. I was full on ready for a divorce. I was done, done, done." Despite his struggles, Kolisi continues to be a powerful advocate for social justice and has made headlines around the globe for his powerful speeches, kind gestures and efforts to make the world a better place. He has done so using his own experiences, having been born and raised in a time when much of South Africa was plagued by poverty, malnutrition, crime and substance abuse. The Springboks icon was himself was raised in poverty by his grandmother in a two-bedroomed house occupied by five people. As a child, he watched his mother and aunt be subjected to gender-based violence, while his grandmother died in his arms when he was just 10 years old. "It went past being hungry; it was actually painful in your stomach," he told the BBC as he reflected on his brutally tough upbringing. "I could feel my intestines twisting in the middle of the night. I would scream to my grandmother and she would get me sugar water and it would settle it down. A lot of my values come from being resilient. The people from my community might be poor financially but they are happy, proud and resilient people." On the violence he saw his loved ones subjected to, Kolisi added: "At home, like right next to me while I was sleeping, I'd wake up hearing the screaming of my mum or my aunt. Or I'd be walking to school and seeing someone getting beaten in the middle of the street and no-one doing anything about it because people felt it wasn't their business." In an interview with the Guardian , Kolisi also spoke about how his mother's face changed dramatically from when she gave birth to him aged 18 to when she died 15 years later. "[She was] beautiful and, most of all, unscarred," he said. "I never saw her look like that because her face changed so much from the different men beating her up … when she died she had scars all over her face. "After she had passed, I showed [old photos of her] to my younger brother and he said: ‘That looks nothing like her.’ That broke me. But, even through the hurt, she’ll always be beautiful to me." Follow all of our channels to ensure you stay up to date with the latest Welsh rugby news. Sign up to our free daily newsletter here and our WhatsApp channel here for all the breaking news. You can also follow us on social media on our X account , Facebook , Instagram and TikTok. For more exclusive stories and in-depth analysis, you can sign up for the Inside Welsh Rugby substack newsletter here.
