More prestigious nominations for World Cup-winning Springboks
SPOTLIGHT: The Springboks continue to dominate the sports landscape following their impressive achievement in 2023.
The back-to-back World Cup champions have been nominated for Team of the Year in this year’s prestigious SA Sports Awards.
The nominations were announced on Wednesday, with rugby featuring among a star-studded list of candidates in nine of the 22 categories.
SA Rugby was nominated in the Sports Federation of the Year category alongside Cricket South Africa and Cycling South Africa, with SA Rugby President Mark Alexander being nominated in the Administrator of the Year category, and the Springboks as Team of the Year.
World Cup-winning Springbok coach Jacques Nienaber, who is currently coaching in Ireland, was named in the Coach of the Year category, while 2023 SA Rugby Men’s Player of the Year Eben Etzebeth – who became only the second player to win the award back-to-back earlier this year – featured in the Sportsman of the Year and People’s Choice Award categories.
Double RWC-winning captain Siya Kolisi was also recognised for his invaluable contribution to the Springbok team by being named as a nominee for Sports Star of the Year, as well as the People’s Choice Award category.
Springbok flyhalf Manie Libbok was listed as one of the nominees for Newcomer of the Year, while SA’s leading women’s referee Aimee Barrett-Theron was also recognised for her achievements being named in the Technical Officer of the Year section.
SA Rugby CEO Rian Oberholzer congratulated the all the nominees and thanked the tireless efforts of the SA Rugby staff members for their contribution in having the organisation nominated as Federation of the Year.
“Having rugby nominated in nine different categories in the county’s most prestige sports awards, is a massive achievement, and we are proud of each individual for being recognised for their efforts on and off the field,” said Oberholzer.
“This is a testament to the hard work the players, coaches, administrators, match officials and staff put in day after day, and these nominations extend to everyone involved. We wish all of them luck as we look forward to what will be another fantastic awards ceremony.”
SA Sports Awards nominees:
SA Rugby – Federation of the Year
Mark Alexander – Sports Administrator of the Year
Springboks – Team of the Year
Jacques Nienaber – Coach of the Year
Eben Etzebeth – Sportsman of the Year and People’s Choice Award
Siya Kolisi – Sports Star of the Year and People’s Choice Award
Manie Libbok – Newcomer of the Year
Aimee Barrett-Theron – Technical Officer of the Year
