Wiaan Liebenberg, who captained the Junior Springboks to their only World U20 Championship title to date, has announced that he will be hanging up his boots at the end of the season.
La Rochelle flank Liebenberg made the announcement on the French club’s website, ending his rugby-playing career at the age of 29.
Liebenberg led the Junior Springboks on home soil in 2012, when the team went all the way to claim the U20 Championship title for the first time.
After progressing through the youth ranks at the Vodacom Bulls, Liebenberg made the move to France in 2015 when he signed for Montpellier.
Liebenberg played three seasons with Montpellier before joining La Rochelle in 2018. There, he established himself as a key member of the team, playing 22 games last season and helping La Rochelle progress to the Top 14 and European Cup final.
“It’s still weird for me to think that I’m going to stop. It’s been a great adventure so far, but I can’t wait for another one,” Liebenberg said in a statement.
“I really have no regrets, I showed everything I wanted to show, I gave everything I would have liked to win a title, but in my life there are more important things than winning titles. I still have a few months left [as a player], I will give everything to claim to win one.”
After his playing career ends, Liebenberg intends to stay in France and start a career in wealth management.
Photo: Eddy Lemaistre/Icon Sport via Getty Images
