Double world champion with the Springboks (2019 and 2023), pillar Steven Kitschoff came very close to disaster during a championship match.
“It was just one more scramble, then I heard three cracks, pop, pop, pop”explique Steven Kitshoff. “I continued to play, thinking it was a torn muscle. But now I know: I was two millimeters from catastrophe, from death.” This is the chilling revelation made by the South African left winger during the Boks Office show on RugbyPass TV.
During a Currie Cup match in South Africa between his Western Province club and the Griquas, just minutes after his return to competition following a serious knee injury. “It happened in the strangest way. It was a normal melee, nothing unusual. The melee didn't even collapse, but during it I felt something snap at the back of my neck, like something had come loose.”he explains.
Six hours of operation
After undergoing a long six-hour neck operation on November 20, the pillar with 83 caps for the Springboks is now continuing his convalescence. With the hope of being able to play again after a long period of rest. “The first thing the specialist said to me was: Look, you're lucky we didn't bury you this week. The vertebra that moved was very close to my brain canal. Without l “operation, I would never have been able to play Rugby again”he declared in the South African media.
“I will see the specialist in January to assess my recovery. If my neck holds, I will go all the way”he added. “If I have to retire, I will be satisfied with what I have accomplished. But I am not finished. I have always been a warrior for my team. Rugby is a dangerous sport, but I will give my all that I have because I fight for my team.”
