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28 October 2023 | Story Jóhann Thormählen

The University of the Free State (UFS) is tremendously proud of the Springboks for claiming a record fourth title and for once again having former Kovsies part of a World Cup champion side.

Jacques Nienaber – the Boks’ head coach and UFS alumnus – and his rugby team united the country when South Africa became the first team in history to win the William Webb Ellis trophy a fourth time. They are also the first South African side to win consecutive World Cup tournaments.

The UFS community celebrates this remarkable achievement with the rest of South Africa and cannot wait to welcome back the latest world champions after defeating New Zealand 12-11 in the final in Paris on Saturday (28 October 2023).

It is truly incredible! The victory means so much to our country. And for our university it also means a lot, especially with all the former Kovsies involved in the planning and execution of the whole World Cup campaign. Congratulations to the Springboks! It is awesome - Jaco Swanepoel (Head of Rugby at KovsieSport)

UFS alumni at helm

The triumph in France is also the second time in four years that a Kovsie has steered the Boks to World Cup victory. In 2019 in Japan, Rassie Erasmus was the head coach.

Erasmus still counts among a handful of former Shimlas and Kovsies in the class of 2023.

The former Springbok player, together with Nienaber, Daan Human (scrum coach), and Bongani Tim Qumbu (strength and conditioning coach) are all in the Bok management, while the former Shimla Ox Nche helped the team beat the All Blacks on the field.

The final was also the last game as head coach for Nienaber, who studied physiotherapy at the UFS and later became a coach. He will be joining the Irish club Leinster as an assistant coach.

Another UFS alumnus, Jaco Peyper, represented South Africa as a World Cup referee in 2023. He refereed his second World Cup opening match and was in charge of the quarter-final between Wales and Argentina, where he was unfortunately injured.

Jaco Swanepoel, Head of Rugby at KovsieSport, congratulated the Springboks. He said it takes determination, planning, and hard work – from the players, coaches, and all involved.

“It is truly incredible! The victory means so much to our country,” he said.

“And for our university it also means a lot, especially with all the former Kovsies involved in the planning and execution of the whole World Cup campaign.”

“Congratulations to the Springboks! It is awesome!”

Kovsies part of all four World Cup victories

The UFS not only had former Kovsies in the 2023 Bok side, but also in all three previous South African World Cup winning teams (1995, 2007, and 2019) – either as players or team management.

“The UFS Rugby Club is very proud of the Springboks, and of course the former Kovsies involved, for winning the World Cup again,” said Marius van Rensburg, UFS Rugby Club Chairman.

He said a Bok jersey from the 2007 World Cup winning team, signed by all the UFS alumni involved, is part of the memorabilia in the Shimla Room at Shimla Park.

“It would be great if we could get another Springbok jersey – signed by all the Kovsies who won the 2023 World Cup –to add to our collection.

News Archive

New publication on groundwater remediation soon to be introduced
2017-05-05

Description: Prof Abdon Atangana groundwater remediation Tags: Prof Abdon Atangana groundwater remediation

A new book from Prof Abdon Atangana from
the UFS Institute for Groundwater Studies
proposes new techniques for groundwater
remediation, including guidelines on how chemical
companies can be positioned in any city to avoid
groundwater pollution.
Photo: Pixabay

A new publication, Fractional Operators with Constant and Variable Order with Application to Geo-Hydrology, will be published later this year, on 1 November 2017. The author, Prof Abdon Atangana, from the Institute of Groundwater Studies at the University of the Free State, said the book proposes new techniques for groundwater remediation, including guidelines on how chemical companies can be positioned in any city to avoid groundwater pollution.

Focus of the book
Prof Atangana said researchers and practitioners interested in groundwater modelling and remediation from applied mathematical and geo-hydrology backgrounds, will benefit from reading this book.

According to Elsevier, the book provides a physical review of fractional operators, fractional variable order operators, and uncertain derivatives to groundwater flow and environmental remediation. It presents a formal set of mathematical equations for the description of groundwater flow and pollution problems using the concept of non-integer order derivative. Both advantages and disadvantages of models with fractional operators are discussed.

“Researchers and practitioners
interested in groundwater modelling
and remediation from applied
mathematician and geo-hydrology
backgrounds, will benefit from
reading this book.”

About the author
Prof Atangana specialises in applied mathematics, groundwater modelling, fractional calculus and their applications, methods for partial differential equations, methods for ordinary differential equations, iterations methods, asymptotic methods, perturbations methods, and numerical method for fractional differential equations, uncertainties analysis. He has participated in 18 international conferences, organised six special sections and symposiums in international conference in Europe, Africa, Asia and USA, and has been invited as plenary speaker in eight international conferences. He also serves as editor on 20 international journal of mathematics and applied mathematics and editor-in-chief of two international journals of applied mathematics.

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