News24
12 Jun 2019, 17:40 GMT+10
London - Warren Gatland was officially unveiled as the British and Irish Lions head coach for the 2021 tour to South Africa on Wednesday, revealing he had "unfinished business" against the Springboks.
Gatland will relinquish his role as Wales boss after the World Cup in Japan later this year and will start his official Lions duties in August 2020.
The 55-year-old will lead the Lions for the third consecutive tour, after winning the 2013 series in Australia and drawing with New Zealand in 2017. He was assistant to Ian McGeechan in South Africa in 2009.
"I'm hugely honoured and delighted to lead the Lions again," said Gatland. "It is exciting and a great challenge to coach the best players from the four Home Nations.
"The Lions rightly have a truly special place in the game and I jumped at the chance to be involved again when I was approached about the role. South Africa is a special place to play rugby."
He added: "Having toured there in 2009 I know the scale of the task ahead of us -- playing in South Africa presents a number of unique challenges such as playing at altitude, while the Boks will always be physical, aggressive and highly motivated.
"History tells you it's a tough place to tour but I am 100 percent confident that we can go there and win. I would not be here if I thought differently."
Gatland revealed he had "unfinished business" against South Africa, who won the 2009 series 2-1.
"Being a part of the Lions is an opportunity to go to South Africa and finish some unfinished business. We spoke about the potential and I couldn't turn my back on the challenge," he said.
The New Zealander admitted this would be his last tour as Lions head coach.
Gatland's long-term future remains unclear but he will first bid to leave Wales on a high at the World Cup.
The former Ireland boss was appointed as Wales head coach in 2007 and has guided the team to three Grand Slams.
Gatland now has the chance to become the first Lions boss to remain unbeaten on tours to Australia, New Zealand and South Africa.
"We're delighted to have got our man. Warren is a world-class coach, boasts a proven track record and knows the Lions better than anyone else currently coaching in world rugby, so naturally he was our first-choice candidate from the start of the process," said Lions managing director Ben Calveley.
"This was a unanimous decision from the Lions board and it was important that we moved swiftly and proactively to secure Warren's signature."
Get a daily dose of China National News news through our daily email, its complimentary and keeps you fully up to date with world and business news as well.
Publish news of your business, community or sports group, personnel appointments, major event and more by submitting a news release to China National News.
More InformationNEW YORK CITY, New York: Former British prime minister Rishi Sunak will return to Goldman Sachs in an advisory role, the Wall Street...
LONDON, U.K.: Physically backed gold exchange-traded funds recorded their most significant semi-annual inflow since the first half...
AMSTERDAM, Netherlands: Some 32 percent of global semiconductor production could face climate change-related copper supply disruptions...
NEW YORK, New York - U.S. stocks rebounded Tuesday with all the major indices gaining ground. Markets in the UK, Europe and Canada...
NEW YORK CITY, New York: Financial markets kicked off the week on a cautious note as President Donald Trump rolled out a fresh round...
RIO DE JANEIRO, Brazil: At a two-day summit over the weekend, the BRICS bloc of emerging economies issued a joint declaration condemning...
HONG KONG: China has fired back at the European Union in an escalating trade dispute by imposing new restrictions on medical device...
by Hua Gesheng Protecting intellectual property rights (IPR) needs global cooperation. Unfortunately, some countries have deliberately...
New Delhi [India], July 11 (ANI): Current bullion market is focusing on a combination of factors which includes direction of US interest...
Mumbai (Maharashtra) [India], July 11 (ANI): Gautam Adani, Chairman of the Adani Group, on Friday announced that the conglomerate will...
CHONGQING, July 11 (Xinhua) -- In an orchard in Quchi Township of Wushan County in southwest China's Chongqing Municipality, villager...
Islamabad [Pakistan], July 11 (ANI): Pakistan is grappling with an alarming education crisis, with over 25.37 million children aged...