Serge Blanco

Serge Blanco

Date of birth	(1958-08-31) 31 August 1958 (age 66)
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
Rugby union career
Position(s) Fullback or wing Amateur team(s) Years Team Apps (Points) 1974–1992 Biarritz () International career Years Team Apps (Points) 1980–1991 France 93 (233)

Serge Blanco (born 31 August 1958) is a former rugby union rugby player who played fullback for Biarritz Olympique and the French national side, gaining 93 caps, 81 of them at fullback. His alternative position was wing. He was generally nicknamed by French rugby fans as the Pelé of Rugby.

Blanco was born in Caracas, Venezuela, to a Venezuelan father and a Basque mother, and was raised in Biarritz, France. He made his international debut against South Africa at Loftus Versfeld Stadium on 8 November 1980, which France lost 37–15.

He scored the deciding try in the semi-final of the inaugural Rugby World Cup in 1987, France winning 30–24 against co-hosts Australia.^[1] He also won Grand Slams with France in the 1981 and 1987 Five Nations Championship.

Serge Blanco captained the French side in the 1991 Rugby World Cup before retiring after their quarter-final defeat by England on 19 October 1991. He won a total of 93 caps (a record at the time) and still holds the record for the most tries scored for France (38). Despite his international success he has failed to win the national championship with his club Biarritz Olympique, despite making a final appearance in 1992.^[2] This match against Toulon was his last first-class rugby union match. In 1997 Serge Blanco was among the inaugural set of rugby players inducted into the International Rugby Hall of Fame. In 2011, he was also inducted into the IRB Hall of Fame.^[3]

After retiring as a player, he continued serving Biarritz Olympique as their president. In this role he saw his club become French champions in 2002 and 2006.^[2] He was president of France's national professional league, Ligue Nationale de Rugby, until December 2008.^[4] Outside of rugby he is a businessman, owning three hotels and a brand of sportswear and eyeglasses

In March 2009 he suffered a heart attack but recovered after surgery.^[5]

• International Rugby Hall of Fame
• IRB Hall of Fame
• List of rugby union test caps leaders

• Bath, Richard, ed. (1997). Complete Book of Rugby. Seven Oaks Ltd. ISBN 1-86200-013-1.

• Serge Blanco at ESPNscrum
• "Serge Blanco". rugbyhalloffame.com. Archived from the original on 10 December 2012. Retrieved 4 June 2007.
• "The Big Interview – Serge Blanco". planetrugby.com. 27 March 2007. Archived from the original on 27 September 2007. Retrieved 4 June 2007.
• Thalasso Serge Blanco
• Serge Blanco at the World Rugby Hall of Fame