Springbok captain Siya Kolisi thanked the nation for getting behind their successful Rugby World Cup campaign.
The Boks concluded their four-day trophy tour, saying they witnessed a “united nation” in the last few days.
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Following their 12-11 win over the All Blacks in the World Cup final, Springboks embarked on a tour with the Webb Ellis Cup through Gauteng, Cape Town, Durban, and East London where thousands of people lined the streets to welcome the back-to-back Rugby World Cup champions.
Kolisi, who became the second ever player to lift the trophy twice as captain, said the team wanted to help build a nation.
“As a Springbok team we wanted to give South African people hope, but those who welcomed us back at OR Tambo International Airport from France, and all along the trophy tour routes and airports, gave us hope to and inspired us to keep showing that regardless of your upbringing, race, religion and background, you can achieve anything,” said Kolisi on SA Rugby.
“We said before the Rugby World Cup final against New Zealand that were playing for the 60 million plus people in South Africa, and the support we witnessed first-hand on the trophy tour in the last few days was breath-taking.
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“It was special to see the scenes when we arrived home after the 2019 World Cup, but this welcome was something else.
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“We said we wanted to help build the nation through rugby, and with tens of thousands of people from all walks of life in all four provinces running next to the bus and cheering us on, we witnessed a united nation, and we hope we can continue to see this in society as well,” Kolisi said
The Springboks will onlu return to the field next year again but for now, they remain top of the world.
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