“Something inside me said, 'go to the other side of the bus, they will be there',” he recalls. “When I saw Cheslin, I screamed my lungs out! I threw one of my boots up to him, and he signed it and threw it back. Then I cried a little.”
Then Kolisi indicated that he should throw him the other one.
“And then I cried some more. I could see it in his eyes, he was telling me: ‘Much love, bra, I know where you're coming from, I've been there myself'. And when I saw that, I said to myself: ‘dude, cry now, it will be the only chance you'll get to cry like this'. And then I cried.”
And he stole the heart of the nation.
His second moment of fame came on Tuesday when Kolisi took him with as special guest to an award ceremony when Kolbe was honoured. He went on stage to receive the award on Kolbe's behalf.
“I didn't think that would happen, that I would go on stage to get Cheslin's award for him. It was an unbelievable privilege. And I met some of the legends from the Sevens team! I really enjoyed the evening, and I hope there will be more like this.”
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