I met a young Cheslin Kolbe for the first time in the strangest of places. An early morning photo opportunity in the middle of Red Square, smack in the shadow of the Kremlin.
It was 2013, the Rugby World Cup Sevens was there and teams had to be there for the normal photo opportunity that precedes every tournament.
Shy and reluctant to be in front of the cameras, Kolbe was a friendly face when he realised I spoke Afrikaans. He shuffled closer and closer to chat, and further away from the cameras.
The cameras went on, and he evaded the spotlight. Until one moment when a few metres away a photographer noticed our conversation.
It surrounded the typical tourist buy of a furry Russian hat. Cheslin was intrigued and tried it on.
Within a few seconds all the cameras were clicking. Without knowing it he had stolen the limelight.
I think about that moment from time to time, and every time that Kolbe does something amazing.
Back then we didn’t realise it was the start of an illustrious career for a once-in-a-generation superstar, a player who would break ground for scrum-capped wingers everywhere.
Kolbe had arrived late to the tournament, having been with the SA under-20 squad at the Junior World Cup.
When I had asked Paul Treu before the tournament if he really was that good to miss the build up, he just smiled.
HE WAS THAT GOOD, NO HE WAS BETTER
We all learned later that Kolbe was just that good. No, he was better.
The hard work, the determination. The selfless humility that he did it all with.
All those things made it all the more enjoyable when he was named the SA Rugby Player of the year late last week.
Everybody knows what Kolbe can do now - from his exceptional stepping that left Owen Farrell floored in the 2019 World Cup final to the absolutely amazing charge down of Tomas Ramos’ conversion in the 2023 World Cup quarterfinal that I still contend won South African the Rugby World Cup for the second time.
Cheslin Kolbe is awarded the SA Rugby Men's Player of the Year 🇿🇦💥#SARugbyAwards pic.twitter.com/OxaMCRaLPD
— SuperSport Rugby (@SSRugby) March 13, 2025
If there is an exceptional moment, Kolbe is likely to be the face of it.
But he had to fight his way to the top. Too many times he faced calls that he was too small, not physical enough and couldn’t defend.
To say that in 2025 would get you a bemused look because Kolbe has broken so many more boundaries and confounded those who tried to define him as a small player.
In his wake we have the likes of Kurt-Lee Arendse, Edwill van der Merwe and now France’s Louis Bielle-Biarrey, who has set the Six Nations alight with his play.
STOOD TALL IN A WORLD OF MACRO WINGERS
But back then, when macro wingers were the in-thing, Kolbe had to fight every single stereotype that there was.
It was a telling reminder that this is a game for all sizes and shapes, no matter how much World Rugby try and take it closer to Rugby League.
It is also a reminder that you should never judge a book by its cover, and that some of our most fantastic moments in Springbok rugby in the last decade have been because of players that would otherwise be deemed to be too small.
Bielle-Biarrey may well rise to the same heights as Kolbe, and if he does, the world of rugby should celebrate.
But there will always be only one OG in SA Rugby. And last week he finally was honoured for everything he has achieved.
Hail the scrum-capped dancers on the rugby field, for the steps and the joy they bring. Hail those who break boundaries, and cause us to smile about the beauty of the game.
And then hail Kolbe. SA Rugby Player of the year. That shy kid out of sorts in Moscow.
The kid that would go on to astound the rugby world.