South Africa captain Siya Kolisi has lifted the Rugby World Cup after a remarkable injury comeback he says is down to God.
Kolisi hoisted the Webb Ellis Trophy aloft in Paris in October after a stunning 12-11 win over New Zealand’s All Blacks.
But the loose forward wasn’t supposed to be at the finals, after an anterior cruciate knee ligament tear in April which had commentators ruling him out of the tournament.
Kolisi, the iconic first black captain of the Springboks who also lifted the World Cup in Japan in 2019, had other ideas – and so did God.
“I had to believe in powers far stronger than me,” said Kolisi.
“It’s where I drew my confidence from each and every day. I felt, no matter what happened in the process, I was okay.
“There was no way I could justify or explain how I was healing so quickly.
“Some of the medical team were saying it was not normal. They hadn’t seen this kind of healing and the things I was able to do at certain points.”
At the start of the tournament, he quoted 2 Corinthians 12:9 on his Instagram page:
“But he said to me ‘My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.’ Therefore, I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me.”
Kolisi was quick to use his fame to give God the glory for his injury comeback, telling the world’s media: “My foundation was in God. If I didn’t know something, I prayed about it.
“I also read the [Bible] verses that people sent me. That was my comfort zone. It is where I found peace.
“It is huge for me. Not just through the injury; it is every day.
“It is me not taking all the glory for myself, knowing where it comes from.”
His wife, Rachel, had used social media to urge her followers to pray for his recovery.
“She just prayed and believed I could get here,” Kolisi said.
His wife’s support shows the power of forgiveness, after Kolisi suffered public humiliation in the tabloid press when Rachel found revealing photos of a woman in his Instagram messages.
The scandal went public after his wife asked her followers to help her find the woman.
It proved to be a turning point in the rugby player’s lukewarm faith.
The 32-year-old told Go Mag: “While struggling with a lot of things personally – temptations, sins and lifestyle choices – I realised I wasn’t living according to what I was calling myself: a follower of Christ. I was getting by, but I hadn’t decided to fully commit myself to Jesus Christ and start living according to his way.
“That is, until something I was struggling with in my personal life was exposed to the public.
“I knew I either had to change my life, or lose everything. I decided to lose my life and find it in Christ.”
