May 15, 2011
The 1995 World Cup-winning scrumhalf and former Springbok captain Joost van der Westhuizen is battling a life-threatening disease.
Dr Henry Kelbrick, his GP and a close family friend, spotted something was wrong at Easter.
He said: “Joost and I spent the Easter weekend together at Sun City. We wrestled in the swimming pool and I felt that his right arm was a lot weaker than his left one. I said nothing, but kept a close eye on him. Later I realised his tongue was slurring a bit and he mentioned to me that it sometimes happens out of the blue. That’s when I realised there’s trouble.”
Van der Westhuizen’s condition was confirmed by a neurologist the following week.
Dr Kelbrick added: “He is functioning at 100% at the moment and is in good spirits.”
The former scrum-half, 40, is one of South Africa’s biggest sporting heroes, helping them win the World Cup on home soil in 1995 before becoming captain.
When he retired in 2003, he had won a then-record 89 caps and scored 38 tries.
Motor neurone diseases are a group of incurable conditions that impede muscle control. Other sufferers have included Stephen Hawking, actor David Niven and ex- England football manager Don Revie.
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