 Kitshoff in 2022 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Born | (1992-02-10)10 February 1992 (age 34) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Height | 1.83 m (6 ft 0 in)[1] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Weight | 120 kg (18 st 13 lb; 265 lb)[1] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| School | Paul Roos Gymnasium | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Rugby union career | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Medal record
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Steven Kitshoff (born 10 February 1992) is a South African formerrugby union player who last played for theStormers. His playing position wasloosehead prop. He represented theSouth Africa national team and has previously played forBordeaux in the FrenchTop 14 andWestern Province in theCurrie Cup. He joinedUlster for the 2023–24 season.
Kitshoff was a member of theSouth Africa Under 20 team that won the2012 IRB Junior World Championship.[2] In addition, Kitshoff was part of the Western Province team that won the2012 Currie Cup. He retired from professional rugby in 2025 due to complications sustained in a serious neck injury in 2024.
Kitshoff attended Hendrik Louw Primary School andPaul Roos Gymnasium.[3]
Kitshoff first broke through during the 2011 season, making 5 substitute appearances for the Stormers and then 5 Currie Cup appearances for Western Province while still only a teenager. He became more of a regular during 2012, nailing down the number 1 jersey for both the Stormers and Western Province and also winning the Currie Cup title with Province in an impressive win over theSharks inDurban. His 2013 Super Rugby campaign was solid and he carried that form into the Currie Cup later in the year where he was an ever-present as Province reached a second consecutive Currie Cup final this time going down at home to the Sharks. 2014 was a year of frustration as he succumbed to a season-ending injury towards the back-end of the Super Rugby season and this ruled him out of Western Province's successful Currie Cup campaign in which they lifted the title for the second time in three years with a narrow win over theGolden Lions atNewlands.[citation needed]
In February 2015, it was revealed that Kitshoff would joinFrenchTop 14 sideBordeaux at the conclusion of the2015 Currie Cup Premier Division season.[4] He spent two seasons in France before returning to Cape Town in 2017.[5] In his second stint with the Stormers, he was named captain of the team in 2021,[6] and led the team as they won the inauguralUnited Rugby Championship in 2022.[7] He signed forUlster ahead of the 2023–24 season,[8] and returned to the Stormers at the end of the season.[9]
Following his return from Ulster, Steven Kitshoff suffered a serious neck injury during the Currie Cup match against Griquas. Following medical advice, he underwent neck fusion surgery on 20 November to aid in his recovery.[10] He later said the injury was near-fatal, citing his doctors who said that the affected vertebra, which shifted, was located near hiscentral canal at a distance of two millimetres. On 25 February 2025, Kitshoff announced his retirement from professional rugby, citing his injury.[11][12][13]
On 28 May 2016, Kitshoff was included in a 31-manSouth Africa squad for theirthree-test match series against a touringIreland team.[14]
Kitshoff was named in South Africa's squad for the2019 Rugby World Cup and the2023 Rugby World Cup.[15][16] South Africa went on to win both tournaments, defeatingEngland in the2019 final and New Zealand in the2023 final.[17][18]
Western Province
Stormers
South Africa
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| Against | P | W | D | L | Tri | Pts | %Won |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Argentina | 11 | 9 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 81.82 |
 Australia | 11 | 4 | 2 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 36.36 |
 British & Irish Lions | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 66.67 |
 Canada | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 100 |
 England | 9 | 5 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 55.56 |
 France | 7 | 6 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 85.71 |
 Georgia | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 100 |
 Ireland | 4 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 25 |
 Italy | 4 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 10 | 75 |
 Japan | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 100 |
 Namibia | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 100 |
 New Zealand | 15 | 5 | 1 | 9 | 0 | 0 | 33.33 |
 Romania | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 100 |
 Scotland | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 100 |
 Tonga | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 100 |
 Wales | 9 | 5 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 55.56 |
| Total | 83 | 50 | 3 | 30 | 2 | 10 | 60.24 |
Pld = Games Played, W = Games Won, D = Games Drawn, L = Games Lost, Tri = Tries Scored, Pts = Points Scored
| Try | Opposing team | Location | Venue | Competition | Date | Result | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Italy | Padua,Italy | Stadio Euganeo | 2017 end-of-year rugby union internationals | 25 November 2017 | Win | 6–35 |
| 2 | Italy | Genoa,Italy | Stadio Luigi Ferraris | 2022 end-of-year rugby union internationals | 19 November 2022 | Win | 21–63 |
| Season | Team | Games | Starts | Sub | Mins | Tries | Points |  |  |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2011 | Stormers | 5 | 0 | 5 | 126 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2012 | Stormers | 15 | 15 | 0 | 1145 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2013 | Stormers | 15 | 15 | 0 | 1158 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2014 | Stormers | 11 | 10 | 1 | 673 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2015 | Stormers | 15 | 15 | 0 | 993 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 2016 | In Europe withUnion Bordeaux Bègles | ||||||||
| 2017 | Stormers | 3 | 0 | 3 | 102 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2018 | Stormers | 15 | 11 | 4 | 827 | 2 | 10 | 0 | 0 |
| 2019 | Stormers | 13 | 12 | 1 | 773 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2020 | Stormers | 6 | 6 | 0 | 387 | 1 | 5 | 0 | 0 |
| Total | 98 | 84 | 14 | 6184 | 3 | 15 | 1 | 0 | |
