| Birth name | Johannes Petrus Claassens | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Date of birth | (1969-06-30)30 June 1969 (age 55) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Place of birth | Welkom, Free State | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Height | 1.89 m (6 ft 2 in) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Weight | 95 kg (209 lb) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| School | Zeerust High School,Zeerust,North West | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Rugby union career | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Johannes Petrus "Jannie" Claassens (born 30 June 1969) is a South African formerrugby union player.[1][2]
As a schoolboy Claassens representedStellaland at the 1988Craven Week tournament. He made his provincial debut forNorthern Transvaal in 1990 and played 102 matches for the union. During 1992, Claassens was selected for theWorld XV thattour New Zealand to mark the centenary of theNew Zealand Rugby Union.[3]
In 1994 he toured with theSpringboks to New Zealand and toBritain and Ireland. Claassens did not play in any test matches but played in eight tour matches, scoring three tries for the Springboks. In 1993 and in 1996, he representedSouth Africa in sevens.[4]
Claassens was voted as one of the five South Africa Young Players of the Year for 1990, along withAndrew Aitken, Bernard Fourie,Ian MacDonald andTheo Jansen van Rensburg.[5]