| Date of birth | (1975-05-31)31 May 1975 (age 49) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Place of birth | White Rock, British Columbia, Canada | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Height | 185 cm (6 ft 1 in) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Weight | 115 kg (254 lb) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Rugby union career | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Jon Thiel (born May 31, 1975) is a Canadian formerrugby union footballer who played as aprop.
Born inWhite Rock, British Columbia, he began his rugby career with local clubBayside Sharks. He turned professional in 1999 when he joined French sideNarbonne, making 25 appearances in the 1999–2000 season,[1] before moving to England withSale Sharks after his contract expired.[2]
After a year with Sale, he moved to Wales, where he signed forBridgend.[3] When theCeltic Warriors were formed in 2003 as a merger of Bridgend andPontypridd, Thiel was not considered part of the regional squad and briefly returned to Canada[4] before joining theLlanelli Scarlets in November 2003, following the surprise resignation ofMartyn Madden, which had leftJohn Davies as the only senior tighthead prop in the squad.[5]
Before making his regional debut, he played four times forLlanelli RFC in the Welsh Premiership;[6] he also made one appearance forCarmarthen Quins.[7]
Having made just 13 appearances in a little over a year with the Scarlets, a serious calf injury brought a premature end to his time atStradey Park, and he was released in January 2005.[8]
He then returned to Canada, where he took up a player–coach position with Bayside Sharks.[9]
At international level, Thiel made his debut forCanada in 1998, starting in a 38–12 win overHong Kong. He went to threeRugby World Cups with Canada – in1999,2003 and2007 – and made his final appearance in a 34–13 loss toWales at theMillennium Stadium on 14 November 2008.
Thiel is married to former Canada women's international rugby player Jen Ross, who earned four caps between 1994 and 1996. They have three sons: twinsJake andJosh, and younger brotherJames.[10] All three sons have also played rugby for Canada: Jake is a sevens specialist, making his senior debut in the2018 Sydney Sevens,[11] while Josh earned one cap for the senior 15s team, starting at fullback in a 33–17 win over Chile in 2018,[12] and James played as a wing/fullback for Canada's senior development side, thePacific Pride.[13]