Ireland's Brian O'Driscoll is amongst 12 legends of rugby who will be inducted into the World Rugby Hall of Fame at a special ceremony later this week.
Four England players, three Welshmen, a Scot, a Japanese legend, an Australian and a Canadian will be honoured at the ceremony along with O'Driscoll, as the Hall of Fame establishes a physical home for the very first time in Rugby, England.
Men and women who have made a huge contribution to the game, and have been retired for at least three years are eligible to be inducted into the Hall of Fame, and O'Driscoll will be joined this year by such gamous names as Shane Williams, Lawrence Dallaglio and Jonny Wilkinson.
Ireland's record try-scorer and cap-holder with 46 tries in 133 test appearances from 1999-2014, O'Driscoll is without doubt one of the greatest players to pick up a rugby ball.
He burst on to the scene with a sensational hat-trick in a famous Irish win over France in Paris in 2000, and created an outstanding midfield partnership with Gordon D'Arcy that formed the foundation of a period of unprecedented success for the Irish team.
His power, pace, footwork and inventiveness in attack was only matched by his relentless work rate and ability to win turnovers in defence. He also won eight caps for the Lions over the course of four tours, including captaining the side on their tour of New Zealand.
The 12 players will be inducted at a ceremony on November 17th, bringing the total in the Hall of Fame to 132. The full list of new entries is:
Brian O'Driscoll (Ireland), Shane Williams (Wales), Jeremy Guscott (England), Lawrence Dallaglio (England), Heather Moyse (Canada), John Dawes (Wales), GPS Macpherson (Scotland), Arthur Gould (Wales), Jonny Wilkinson (England), Daniel Carroll (Australia and USA), Daisuke Ohata (Japan) and Maggie Alphonsi (England).
World Rugby Chairman Bill Beaumont, who forms part of the Hall of Fame deciding panel and will be in attendance at the induction ceremony later this week, said: "The World Rugby Hall of Fame recognises those who have made an indelible mark on our sport through feats on the field of play, displays of great character or through their tireless and inspirational work in driving forward our great game.
"The latest set of inductions includes some real legends, players who have helped to shape the image of rugby and inspire generations of fans. They are truly some of the biggest names in our sport and all have contributed immensely to the enjoyment we have all felt watching top-level rugby over the decades.
"While the Hall of Fame has been in existence for some years, it is exciting that finally it will have a permanent home and fitting that it should be in the town that gave our game its name, Rugby.
"The physical Hall of Fame will be a wonderful focal point for the game and will attract fans from all over the world to relive the great exploits of rugby's most prominent and talented individuals.”
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