Born on 5 October 1972 in Despatch, Eastern Cape, Rassie is South Africa’s Director of Rugby.

In a playing career that spanned more than 10 years, loose forward Rassie played for Shimlas (University of the Free State), the Free State Cheetahs, and the Golden Lions in the Currie Cup, and for the Cats and the Stormers in the then Super 12 competition.

He captained the Cats to the 2000 Super 12 semi-finals, and also captained the Springboks in one Test.

International playing career

Total Springbok matches: 39
(36 Tests, three tour matches)

Test debut: 5 July 1997 vs the British & Irish Lions in Johannesburg, aged 24
Last Test: 23 June 2001 vs France in Durban, aged 28
Captained the Springboks against Australia in Brisbane, 1999

Coaching career

2004: Coach – Toyota Free State Cheetahs (Vodacom Cup)
2005-2007: Head Coach – Toyota Free State Cheetahs
2007: Technical advisor – Springboks
2008-2010: Director of Coaching and Head Coach – DHL Stormers and DHL Western Province
2011: Technical specialist – Springboks (Rugby World Cup in NZ)
2012-2016: SA Rugby General Manager: High-performance teams / Rugby Department
2016-2017: Director of Rugby and Head Coach – Munster
From November 2017: Director of Rugby – SA Rugby

Coaching honours

Free State Cheetahs
Currie Cup Winners: 2005, 2006 (Shared with Blue Bulls)

Stormers
Vodacom Super 14: Runners-up: 2010

Western Province
Currie Cup Runners-up: 2010

Munster
Guinness Pro12 Runners-up: 2017
Guinness Pro12: Coach of the Season

Springboks
Winner: 2019 – Rugby World Cup and Castle Lager Rugby Championship
Winner: World Rugby Coach of the Year