ONE of Namibia’s greatest rugby players, Gerhard Mans, tragically died in a road accident between Windhoek and Okahandja yesterday morning.
News started filtering through on social media at about 10h00 yesterday, with well-known Namibian marshal ranger Sean Naude reporting of a ‘fatal cyclist accident on the A1 Western Bypass, direction Okahandja towards Windhoek’.
A few minutes later Kosmos Radio 94.1 confirmed the news, saying well-known Namibian rugby player and cyclist Gerhard Mans died after being knocked over while cycling near the Elisenheim bridge.
Republikein shortly afterwards added that a 60-year-old cyclist and former rugby player had died shortly before 10h00 after being knocked off his bicycle by a motorist and died at the scene.
“The driver of a white BMW sedan motor without number plates was taken into custody at the scene,” it added.
Tributes soon started pouring in on Facebook, with Ronel de Beer, a former Namibian national netball player, expressing shock and disbelief.
“My heart is broken and I’m struggling to breathe. Sybrand (her husband) and I just rode that same route this morning. I knew Gerhard from South West rugby days, when my deceased father, Henning Snyman, coached the SWA team that Gerhard captained. I am so sorry for his family, his wife Sarie, their children and grandchildren. May you find peace and comfort in the Lord Almighty,” she said.
Mans and ‘Oom Henning’ formed a formidable pair, and in fact led probably the strongest team in the history of Namibian rugby.
Mans, who was born at Karasburg in 1962, represented SWA Schools in 1979 and 1980, and then made a name for himself while studying in the Orange Free State.
He made his debut for Free State in 1982 and went on to score 20 tries in 26 matches for them.
By 1984 he was selected for the rest of the South Africa team that played Western Province, while he also played for the South African Barbarians against the South African Defence Force team.
After returning to his roots in 1985, he was soon selected for South West Africa and went on to rewrite the record books – both as a prolific try scorer and a highly successful captain.
In 1987 he was appointed as SWA captain, while only 24 years old, and under his leadership, SWA won the South African Currie Cup B division to be promoted to the A division for the first time in their history.
In 1988 Mans led a great team that included Namibian legends like Andre Stoop, Basie Buitendag, Willem Maritz and Sarel Losper, and they stunned South Africa’s leading provinces by finishing third in their debut season.
In probably their most famous victory, they beat Western Province 24-21 at a wet and muddy Newlands Stadium on 21 May, with Mans scoring the winning try.
After Namibia’s independence in 1990, Mans continued to captain the national side, scoring a try in Namibia’s 33-18 victory against Zimbabwe during independence celebrations on 24 March 1990.
In his second test for Namibia against Portugal a month later, he scored six tries in a 86-9 victory – a record that still stands today.
Mans went on to score 26 tries in 27 tests for Namibia, before he retired from international rugby in 1994, and along with his tries for SWA and the Orange Free State, he scored an incredible 100 tries in 132 first-class matches.
His 26 tries for Namibia remained a national record until 2018 when Chrysander Botha scored his 28th try in his 55th test.
Mans is also Namibia’s most successful captain to date, winning 20 international matches, losing five and drawing one between 1990 and 1994 for a success rate of 78%.
Later in his life Mans took up cycling and showed that same commitment and will to win which had made him a rugby legend, going on to win several masters’ awards on the Namibian cycling scene.
His son, Gerhard Junior, also became a top cyclist and went on to represent Namibia at several international events.
Gerhard Mans was a rugby legend and a Namibian hero, and the country is that much poorer without him. Rest in peace, Gerhard.