South Africa's World Cup-winning captain John Smit was reappointed to lead the national team, the South African Rugby Union confirmed today.
New coach Peter de Villiers announced the decision after meetings with Smit in South Africa and France, where the player is contracted to Clermont Auvergne.
"I was very impressed with John and have enormous respect for what he has achieved with the Springboks in the last four years," De Villiers said.
"He is the World Cup-winning captain. He has global respect and he has the desire to add to what was achieved in France last year. This is a new chapter for Springbok rugby, but I believe we must build on the success of the World Cup and it made sense to me to further invest in John's excellent leadership and his ability as a player."
Hooker Smit, 29, has captained the Springboks in a record 49 tests since 2003 and was skipper throughout the four-year term of former coach, Jake White.
Smit said: "When we met in Cape Town I was encouraged by the coach's desire for success and his passion for South African rugby. To be offered the chance to continue with the Springboks is a challenge I would never refuse."
The Springboks' first test of the year is against Wales on June 7th.
:quality(70)/cloudfront-eu-central-1.images.arcpublishing.com/irishtimes/IMNWKIX5DFFCFE5CD5NLBU6EVY.png)