NB Publishers is proud to announce that they will be distributing the Siya Kolisi autobiography, Rise, in South Africa.
HarperCollins Publishers have acquired the World All Language rights for the life story of Siya Kolisi, Springbok captain and captain of the winning 2019 World Cup rugby team from South Africa. Executive Publisher Oli Malcolm negotiated the deal for HarperNonFiction with Kelly Hogarth at Roc Nation Sports, supported by Rory Scarfe at The Blair Partnership. Written with Boris Starling, the book will be published this year, after the Lions Tour to South Africa.
Siya Kolisi says of the publication: ‘There are so many parts of my story that haven’t been told and I feel it’s the perfect time to share these with the hope of inspiring and motivating anyone who has ever faced adversity. It was so important to me that my story was told from my own account and with the right publishing group. I’m thrilled to partner with HarperCollins on a creative project that we can both be proud of.’
In May 2018 Siya Kolisi was appointed captain of the Springboks, the first black test captain in the team’s 128-year history. His appointment was recognized worldwide as a pivotal moment in South African history. The following year he made history once more when he led his team to victory in the 2019 Rugby World Cup, beating England in the final to become the first black captain of a World Cup-winning side.
Kolisi’s life story is an extraordinary story of a young boy from an impoverished township in the Eastern Cape who went on to take the Springboks to their first World Cup final in 12 years and to lift rugby union's greatest accolade. Born to teenage parents, Kolisi was raised by his grandmother after the death of his mother when he was just 15. At the age of 12, he won a rugby scholarship to a prestigious local school, despite not being able to speak English at the time. Just ten years later, Kolisi led his team to victory on the world stage in one of the most inspirational success stories in sporting history. Kolisi’s story is one of stoicism, unification, and self-belief.
Kolisi took to social media to share the good news as well saying,” I’m excited and delighted to announce my book, Rise, will be launching in September. It is rare for a player to release their autobiography during their career but someone else had other ideas and released a book about me without my consent and so I wanted to give you all the opportunity to read my real story. You can pre-order it now. Links in my bio. If you are based in the UK, you can also order signed copies exclusively from Waterstones.com. South African signed copies will be announced in due course – keep an eye out!
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