Rugby Union World Champion in 2017 and 2022, the New Zealander will retire after the Olympic rugby sevens tournament.
New Zealand’s Portia Woodman-Wickliffe, one of the world’s most famous players, announced on Monday that she would retire from international rugby after the Olympic rugby sevens tournament in Paris.
“After 12 incredible years representing New Zealand at 7s and 15s, the upcoming Olympics in Paris will be the last time I play in the black jersey”she explained, quoted in a press release from the New Zealand Rugby Federation.
Twice best player in the world
The 32-year-old winger, who comes from a prominent international family – her father, Kawhena Woodman, and uncle, Fred Woodman, played for the All Blacks – has acquired one of the greatest honours in world women’s rugby.
She notably won with the «Black Ferns» the Rugby World Cup Sevens in 2013 and 2018, and the Rugby World Cup in 2017 and 2022, as well as Olympic silver (in 2016 in Rio) and gold (in 2021 in Tokyo) medals.
Twice designated “best female player in the world” (2015 for rugby sevens and 2017 for 15s), she holds the record for the number of tries scored in the World Cup (20) and in rugby sevens matches (256).
“Rugby has given me more than a career, it has given me a second whanau (extended family in Maori, editor’s note) with my sisters, opportunities to discover the world and live experiences that I would never have had. One last dance with my sisters in Paris”did she say.
In 2018, the player ruptured her Achilles tendon and returned to the field after a long recovery to help her country win Olympic gold in Tokyo. She later admitted that the injury still left her with a weak calf.
