Nomsebenzi Tsotsobe
Encyclopedia
Nomsebenzi Agnes "Noms" Tsotsobe (born 24 November 1978) is a South Africa
n rugby union
player and model. Tsotsobe was born in Kwa Magxaki, Port Elizabeth, and has played for and captained the South Africa women's national rugby union team
, the Springboks, since their founding in 2004.
in Paris
in 2002.
in rugby, and started her career playing for the Hilltop Eagles club in Eastern Cape
Province
. She won a number of honours both for the Eagles and while playing representative competition for Eastern Province, and was named captain of Eastern Province in 2002.
Tsotsobe played for South Africa's women's rugby union team in their first international match against Wales on 29 May 2004, with the Springboks losing the test match
at Adcock Stadium, Port Elizabeth, 5–8. Tsotsobe was named captain for the second test on 5 June 2004, which the Springboks lost 15–16 at Loftus Versfeld, Pretoria
. The team had their first success in their next international test on 30 April 2005, played at Ebbw Vale
, Wales, beating the Welsh team 24–9.
In April 2005 Tsotsobe was chosen as one of ten Beauties of Sport in a contest run by South African Sports Illustrated
.
Tsotsobe continued to captain the national team for several years, including at the Women's Rugby World Cup
events. As of 2008 she was still serving as captain of the national team.
Tsotsobe took on the role of team manager for the South Africa women’s under-20 team, and was to serve in this position for the Under-20 Nations Cup
in the United States
in 2011.
in New Brighton
which resulted in the death of a pedestrian, 21-year-old Luyanda Mtsele of KwaFord, a student studying her final year of civil engineering
at Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University
. In 2010 Tsotsobe was acquitted of a charge of culpable homicide
over this incident, the court finding that Mtsele and a friend were under the influence of alcohol
and were inappropriately walking down the middle of the road at the time of the accident.
South Africa
The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...
n rugby union
Rugby union
Rugby union, often simply referred to as rugby, is a full contact team sport which originated in England in the early 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand...
player and model. Tsotsobe was born in Kwa Magxaki, Port Elizabeth, and has played for and captained the South Africa women's national rugby union team
South Africa women's national rugby union team
The South Africa women's national rugby union team are a national sporting side of South Africa, representing them at rugby union. The side first played in 2004.-Squad:Squad for 2010 Women's Rugby World Cup-Results summary:...
, the Springboks, since their founding in 2004.
Modelling
Tsotsobe made her debut as an international modelModel (person)
A model , sometimes called a mannequin, is a person who is employed to display, advertise and promote commercial products or to serve as a subject of works of art....
in Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
in 2002.
Rugby
Tsotsobe specialised in the position of FlankerFlanker (rugby union)
A flanker is a position in the sport of rugby union. Flankers play in the forwards, and are generally classified as either blindside, or openside flankers; numbers six and seven respectively. The name comes from their position in a scrum in which they flank each set of forwards...
in rugby, and started her career playing for the Hilltop Eagles club in Eastern Cape
Eastern Cape
The Eastern Cape is a province of South Africa. Its capital is Bhisho, but its two largest cities are Port Elizabeth and East London. It was formed in 1994 out of the "independent" Xhosa homelands of Transkei and Ciskei, together with the eastern portion of the Cape Province...
Province
Provinces of South Africa
South Africa is currently divided into nine provinces. On the eve of the 1994 general election, South Africa's former homelands, also known as Bantustans, were reintegrated and the four existing provinces were divided into nine. The twelfth, thirteenth and sixteenth amendments to the constitution...
. She won a number of honours both for the Eagles and while playing representative competition for Eastern Province, and was named captain of Eastern Province in 2002.
Tsotsobe played for South Africa's women's rugby union team in their first international match against Wales on 29 May 2004, with the Springboks losing the test match
Test match (rugby union)
Test match in rugby union is a match recognised as being a full international match by at least one of the participating teams' governing bodies. It is an unofficial but widely used term in the sport....
at Adcock Stadium, Port Elizabeth, 5–8. Tsotsobe was named captain for the second test on 5 June 2004, which the Springboks lost 15–16 at Loftus Versfeld, Pretoria
Pretoria
Pretoria is a city located in the northern part of Gauteng Province, South Africa. It is one of the country's three capital cities, serving as the executive and de facto national capital; the others are Cape Town, the legislative capital, and Bloemfontein, the judicial capital.Pretoria is...
. The team had their first success in their next international test on 30 April 2005, played at Ebbw Vale
Ebbw Vale
Ebbw Vale is a town at the head of the valley formed by the Ebbw Fawr tributary of the Ebbw River, south Wales. It is the largest town and the administrative centre of Blaenau Gwent county borough...
, Wales, beating the Welsh team 24–9.
In April 2005 Tsotsobe was chosen as one of ten Beauties of Sport in a contest run by South African Sports Illustrated
Sports Illustrated
Sports Illustrated is an American sports media company owned by media conglomerate Time Warner. Its self titled magazine has over 3.5 million subscribers and is read by 23 million adults each week, including over 18 million men. It was the first magazine with circulation over one million to win the...
.
Tsotsobe continued to captain the national team for several years, including at the Women's Rugby World Cup
Women's Rugby World Cup
The Women's Rugby World Cup is the premier international competition in rugby union for women. The tournament is organised by the sport's governing body the International Rugby Board...
events. As of 2008 she was still serving as captain of the national team.
Tsotsobe took on the role of team manager for the South Africa women’s under-20 team, and was to serve in this position for the Under-20 Nations Cup
Nations Cup (Women's rugby)
The Nations Cup is an international women's rugby series organized jointly by USA Rugby, the RFUW and Rugby Canada,and played each summer with rotating host locations. As well as the organisers, guest teams from other nations also take part...
in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
in 2011.
Car accident
In October 2005 Tsotsobe was involved in a motor car accidentCar accident
A traffic collision, also known as a traffic accident, motor vehicle collision, motor vehicle accident, car accident, automobile accident, Road Traffic Collision or car crash, occurs when a vehicle collides with another vehicle, pedestrian, animal, road debris, or other stationary obstruction,...
in New Brighton
New Brighton, Nelson Mandela Metropole
New Brighton is a suburb of Port Elizabeth, South Africa....
which resulted in the death of a pedestrian, 21-year-old Luyanda Mtsele of KwaFord, a student studying her final year of civil engineering
Civil engineering
Civil engineering is a professional engineering discipline that deals with the design, construction, and maintenance of the physical and naturally built environment, including works like roads, bridges, canals, dams, and buildings...
at Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University
Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University
Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University is a South African tertiary education institution with its main administration in the coastal city of Port Elizabeth. The merger creating the NMMU was realized in January 2005 but its history dates back to 1882 with the foundation of Port Elizabeth Art School...
. In 2010 Tsotsobe was acquitted of a charge of culpable homicide
Culpable homicide
Culpable homicide is a specific offence in various jurisdictions within the Commonwealth of Nations which involves the illegal killing of a person either with or without an intention to kill depending upon how a particular jurisdiction has defined the offence...
over this incident, the court finding that Mtsele and a friend were under the influence of alcohol
Alcohol
In chemistry, an alcohol is an organic compound in which the hydroxy functional group is bound to a carbon atom. In particular, this carbon center should be saturated, having single bonds to three other atoms....
and were inappropriately walking down the middle of the road at the time of the accident.