Cape Town (AFP)

Hundreds of people, family, former teammates or rugby fans have paid Saturday in Cape Town a final tribute to former Springboks Chester Williams, the only black world champion with South Africa in 1995.

The former winger, who coached the team at Western Cape University, died last week of a heart attack at the age of 49.

"He was a pioneer, many black kids considered Chester a forerunner, someone who used his best qualities and made us very proud," said Francois Pienaar, captain of the South African XV, crowned 1995, at his funeral held at a stadium in Cape Town.

Chester Williams was the only black player on the team to beat the All-New Zealand All-Blacks (15-12) in the 1995 World Cup historic final at Ellis Park in Johannesburg, in front of the first president. Black Country Nelson Mandela.

The event marked the return of South Africa to the world rugby concert after years of boycott because of apartheid.

Under the racist regime, only white players were allowed to be part of the Springboks. In 1981, opening half Errol Tobias was the first black player selected for the national team.

"We had a long trip together, I was very close to him, I played under the same jersey for the Western Province and South Africa," said Joel Stransky.

"We came from different cultures and backgrounds, but we had the same conception of life, it was a privilege to know him, it's so sad to have to say goodbye to him," added the former half-brother. opening, author of the drop that gave the victory to the Springboks in 1995.

Chester Williams made his international debut in 1993 against Argentina and scored 14 tries in 27 caps.

He is the fourth Springbok player from 1995 to die young, after third row Ruben Kruger in 2010 (brain cancer) and scrum half Joost van der Westhuizen in 2017 (Charcot's disease) and winger James Small in July (heart attack).

The world title won by South Africans in 1995 remains tainted with suspicions of doping because several South African players of the first half of the 1990s are suffering, like Van der Westhuizen, rare neurological diseases.

No evidence has so far established a connection between these conditions and possible doping.

© 2019 AFP