{
  "id": 18512050,
  "title": "Springbok captain Siya Kolisi pays tribute to Hyron Andrews: ‘An amazing human being’",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/11/06/springbok-captain-siya-kolisi-pays-tribute-to-hyron-andrews-an",
  "topic": "world",
  "section": "World",
  "published": "2026-11-06T14:11:00.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "The Citizen",
    "slug": "the-citizen",
    "url": "https://www.citizen.co.za/sport/rugby/hyron-amazing-human-kolisi/"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Springbok captain Siya Kolisi honored his close friend and former teammate Hyron Andrews, who is set to be laid to rest in a private funeral service in Paarl on Saturday. The 31-year-old Lions lock Andrews tragically passed away last month at the team hotel in France, just a day before the Springboks were set to face La Rochelle in their inaugural Champions Cup match. Despite the shock, the Lions proceeded with the match in memory of Andrews, while his former teams, the Sharks and Sale Sharks, also mourned his loss. On Friday, Kolisi spoke about Andrews at a Springbok pre-match press conference in Turin ahead of the team's Nations Championship game against Italy on Saturday. The world champions emphasized the difficulty in coming to terms with Andrews' passing, as it felt as if they had seen him recently. Kolisi praised Andrews as an \"amazing human being\" who brought energy, was a dedicated team player, and remained supportive even when not playing. He also acknowledged the immense difficulty his wife and family are facing, and expressed support for them during this challenging time.",
  "summary": "Kolisi and Andrews played together at the Sharks, while they would also have been opponents at times, as well.",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 3,
    "also_reported_by": [
      {
        "outlet": "Channel News Asia",
        "title": "Kolisi welcomes homecoming of Bok stars, pays tribute to Andrews",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/11/06/kolisi-welcomes-homecoming-of-bok-stars-pays-tribute-to-andrews",
        "published": "2026-11-06T13:59:46.000Z"
      },
      {
        "outlet": "IOL",
        "title": "Siya Kolisi: Springboks must mind their own business in race with All Blacks",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/11/06/siya-kolisi-springboks-must-mind-their-own-business-in-race-with-all",
        "published": "2026-11-06T15:18:04.000Z"
      }
    ]
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}