Serge Blanco facts for kids
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| Date of birth | 31 August 1958 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Place of birth | Caracas, Venezuela | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Occupation(s) | President: Biarritz Olympique Owner of Groupe Serge Blanco Partner of the Brand Serge Blanco Administration council of Biarritz Olympique |
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| Rugby union career | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Serge Blanco (born 31 August 1958) is a famous former rugby union player from France. He mostly played as a fullback for his club, Biarritz Olympique, and for the French national team. He was known for his exciting style of play.
Serge Blanco played in 93 international matches for France, with 81 of those as a fullback. He was often called the Pelé of Rugby by French fans, comparing him to the legendary football player. Blanco was born in Caracas, Venezuela, but grew up in Biarritz, France. He played his first international game against South Africa on 8 November 1980.
Serge Blanco's Rugby Journey
Serge Blanco was a key player for France during his career. In the first-ever Rugby World Cup in 1987, he scored the winning try in the semi-final match against Australia. France won that exciting game 30–24. He also helped France win two Grand Slams in the Five Nations Championship in 1981 and 1987. A Grand Slam means a team wins all their games in the tournament.
Blanco was the captain of the French team in the 1991 Rugby World Cup. He retired from playing after France lost to England in the quarter-finals on 19 October 1991. He held the record for the most international games played for France with 93 caps. He still holds the record for the most tries scored for France, with 38 tries. Even though he had great success with the national team, he never won the French national championship with his club, Biarritz Olympique. His last professional rugby game was the 1992 final against Toulon.
In 1997, Serge Blanco was one of the first rugby players to be added to the International Rugby Hall of Fame. Later, in 2011, he was also inducted into the IRB Hall of Fame, which recognizes the greatest rugby players of all time.
Life After Playing Rugby
After he stopped playing, Serge Blanco continued to be involved with his club, Biarritz Olympique. He became the president of the club. During his time as president, Biarritz Olympique won the French championship twice, in 2002 and 2006.
He also served as the president of France's national professional rugby league, called Ligue Nationale de Rugby, until December 2008. Outside of rugby, Serge Blanco owns a group of hotels and has a men's clothing brand named after him. In March 2009, he had a heart attack but made a full recovery after surgery.
See also
In Spanish: Serge Blanco para niños
- International Rugby Hall of Fame
- IRB Hall of Fame
- List of rugby union test caps leaders
