Felipe Contepomi facts for kids

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Felipe Contepomi

Contepomi during a training session at Stade Français.
Birth name	Felipe Contepomi
Date of birth	(1977-08-20) 20 August 1977 (age 48)
Place of birth	Buenos Aires, Argentina
Height	1.80 m (5 ft 11 in)
Weight	92 kg (14 st 7 lb)
School	Colegio Cardenal Newman (Buenos Aires)
University	Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland
Notable relative(s)	Manuel Contepomi (twin brother), Silvana Contepomi, Juan Pablo Contepomi, Francisco Contepomi, Bebe Contepomi(Famous Radio Person) , Lia Contepomi, Maria Elena Contepomi, Mercedes Villegas, Santiago Villegas, Francisco Villegas, Joaquin Villegas
Spouse	Sofia Gallego Soto
Children	Catalina, Manuela, Juan Ignacio
Rugby union career
Position(s) Fly-half, Centre Amateur team(s) Years Team Apps (Points) 1996–2000 Club Newman () 2003–2004 Carlow RFC () 2005 Lansdowne FC () 2013–14 Club Newman () Senior career Years Team Apps (Points) 2001–2003 Bristol 60 (769) 2003–2009 Leinster 116 (1,225) 2009–2011 Toulon 41 (165) 2011–2013 Stade Français 30 (172) 2013–2015 Club Newman () Correct as of 12 June 2013 National team(s) Years Team Apps (Points) 1998–2013 Argentina 87 (651) Correct as of 6 October 2013 Correct as of 11 July 2014 Teams coached Years Team 2015 Argentina XV (assistant coach) 2015–2017 Jaguares (defence coach) 2017–2018 Argentina XV 2018–2022 Leinster (backs coach) 2022–2023 Argentina (assistant coach) 2024– Argentina

Felipe Contepomi was born on August 20, 1977, in Buenos Aires, Argentina. He is a famous rugby coach and is currently the head coach of Argentina's national rugby team.

He used to be a professional rugby player. He played as a fly-half or centre. He played for his home club, Club Newman, before joining big teams in Europe. Felipe was a very important player for Argentina's national team, called the "Pumas," for 15 years! His twin brother, Manuel, also played for the Pumas.

In November 2017, Felipe was honored by being added to the World Rugby Hall of Fame.

Playing Rugby: Club Career

Starting Out in Argentina

Felipe Contepomi began playing rugby at his secondary school, Colegio Cardenal Newman. He then played for Club Newman in Buenos Aires. In 2001, he signed his first professional contract. He joined the English team Bristol.

Playing for Leinster Rugby

After Bristol was moved to a lower league in 2003, Felipe joined Leinster in Ireland. He was a key player for Leinster. In the 2005–06 Heineken Cup, he helped Leinster win a big game against Toulouse. He scored 21 points and was named man of the match. That year, he scored the most points in both the 2005–06 Celtic League and the Heineken Cup.

In 2006, Felipe's daughter, Catalina, was born. Just hours later, he played for Leinster in a match where he scored 22 points! In November of that year, another famous rugby player, Agustín Pichot, said Felipe was even better than All Black fly-half, Dan Carter.

Becoming a Doctor

On May 31, 2007, Felipe earned his medical degrees from the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland in Dublin. He even worked at Beaumont Hospital, Dublin for a while. This shows he is talented both on and off the field!

Injuries and New Teams

Felipe helped Leinster win against Munster in the Heineken Cup semi-final on May 2, 2009. He scored a drop goal, but then got a knee injury. Doctors found he had torn a ligament, which meant he would be out for about six months.

He returned to play for Toulon in France on November 21, 2009. He scored a penalty in their win. In March 2009, it was announced that Felipe would leave Leinster. He signed a four-year deal with Toulon. After two seasons with Toulon, he moved to Stade Français for the 2011–12 season. He then returned to Argentina in 2013 before he retired from playing.

Playing Rugby: International Career

Joining the Pumas

Felipe Contepomi was one of the best rugby players in the world. He became captain of the Argentina national team (the Pumas) in 2008. He had played for Argentina's younger teams and Sevens teams before. He made his first appearance for the Pumas in 1998 against Chile. Since then, he was a very important part of Argentine rugby.

Felipe is a very skilled player. He started his international career as a fly-half. Later, he often played as an inside centre.

World Cup Appearances

He was part of the squad for the 1999 Rugby World Cup. In that tournament, the Pumas reached the quarter-finals for the first time ever. In 2000, Marcelo Loffreda became the national coach, and Felipe kept his place on the team. He became a regular starter in 2001.

Contepomi taking a kick against England during the 2011 Rugby World Cup

On November 10, 2001, he scored 25 points in a 30–16 victory over Wales. He was also part of the 2003 Rugby World Cup squad. He played in three of the Pumas' pool games.

In 2004, Felipe scored 14 points as Argentina beat France in Marseille. He also played against the British & Irish Lions in 2005. At the end of 2006, he was part of the Pumas team that won against England for the first time at Twickenham.

2007 Rugby World Cup Success

The Pumas surprised everyone with their amazing performance at the 2007 Rugby World Cup in France. Felipe was a key player in this tournament. He played in all seven matches. The Pumas finished in third place, which was a huge achievement!

Felipe was the second-highest point scorer in the tournament. He kicked four penalties in the opening win against France. He also scored 11 points in the pool victory over Ireland and in the quarter-final against Scotland. The IRB nominated Felipe as one of the top five players for the 2007 International Player of the Year award.

Later International Years

After the veteran player Agustín Pichot retired, Felipe became the captain of the Pumas in 2008. This was under the new coach, Santiago Phelan.

A knee injury in 2009 kept him out of action for over a year. But he returned to play for the Pumas in 2010. He scored 31 points in their 41–13 victory over France. He was also part of the Argentine squad for the 2011 Rugby World Cup in New Zealand, playing as captain.

Felipe played his last international game for Argentina on October 5, 2013. This was against Australia during The Rugby Championship. When he retired, Felipe had played the most test matches for Argentina (87). He also scored the most points in international games (651).

Coaching Career

After retiring as a player, Felipe Contepomi became a coach. He started as an assistant coach for the Argentina XV team in 2015. This team played in the 2015 World Rugby Nations Cup. He then became the defense coach for the new Super Rugby team, Jaguares.

In 2017, he became the head coach for Argentina XV. In his first year, his team won four games and had one draw. They finished second in the 2017 Americas Rugby Championship. Later, they won the 2017 World Rugby Americas Pacific Challenge. He stayed with Argentina XV in 2018, and they again finished second in the Americas Rugby Championship.

In June 2018, Felipe was appointed as the new backs coach for Leinster. During his time at Leinster, the team won the Pro14 championship three times (2019, 2020, and 2021). They also reached the knockout stage of the European Cup every season, including the final in 2019 and 2022.

After the 2021–22 season, Felipe left Leinster to return to Argentina. He became the attack coach for the national team under the new head coach, Michael Cheika. Their first big challenge was a three-test series against Scotland in 2022. The Pumas won the series 2–1, which was their first series victory over Scotland since 1994.

In 2022, the Pumas also had historic wins against Australia, New Zealand, and England. They then finished fourth in the 2023 Rugby World Cup.

After the World Cup, Michael Cheika decided not to continue as coach. In December 2023, Felipe Contepomi was promoted to head coach of the Argentine national team.

Honours

Playing Achievements

Coaching Achievements

Argentina XV

See also

In Spanish: Felipe Contepomi para niños