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French rugby great Christophe Dominici dies aged 48

France winger Christophe Dominici has passed away suddenly
France winger Christophe Dominici has passed away suddenly

Former France winger Christophe Dominici has died suddenly aged 48, his former club Stade Francais announced in a statement on Tuesday.

"It is with immense sadness that the Stade Français learns of the death of Christophe Dominici," the club said in a statement. 

"During the 11 years spent in our colours, Christophe, thanks to his incredible talent and his class, greatly contributed to writing the legend of the club.

"An international 65 times, his exploits in the blue jersey have dazzled thousands of young rugby players and allowed the French team to write some of the most beautiful pages in its history. Rugby genius and peerless companion, he leaves a great void in our big family. Our hearts go out to his family, his partner Loretta, his daughters Chiara and Mia."

A feted winger, Dominici earned 65 caps for Les Blues between 1998 and 2007. The Toulon-born player scored 25 tries for his country, placing him 7th in France's all-time try-scoring list. 

He was part of two Grand Slam winning squads in 1998 and 2004 (he missed out on the 2002 success) winning two further Six Nations titles in 2006 and 2007.


He was an integral part of the France side which famously reached the 1999 World Cup final, scoring a crucial try in the semi-final victory over New Zealand in Twickenham.

Dominici retired from international rugby after the 2007 World Cup. 

Brian O'Driscoll paid tribute to Dominici on Twitter saying: "Very sad to hear of the sudden passing of Christophe Dominici. A French player full of flair with huge success throughout his career. May he RIP."

At club level, he played for La Vallette and Toulon but spent the bulk of his career at Stade Francais, where he won five French titles and appeared in two Heineken Cup finals, in 2001 and 2005. 

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