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Francois was not only the captain of South Africa in all his 29 appearances, but he famously led them to victory in the 1995 World Cup, beating New Zealand in the final. His role was played by American actor Mark Damon in the film ‘Invictus’. Despite coming from a working-class family, he studied law at university and played his provincial rugby for the Transvaal. When he received the Webb Ellis World Cup he was photographed being embraced by Nelson Mandela, who was also wearing a Springbok jersey. However, he was controversially dropped by the coach and Francois moved to London to play and coach the Saracens Rugby Club to win the Pilkington Cup and qualify for the European Cup and also lead the famous Barbarians side. In 2002 he returned with his family to live in Cape Town, South Africa. Both his sons had Nelson Mandela as a godfather and Pienaar’s autobiography was called Rainbow Warrior.
