Kolisi to tell ‘his real story’ in new book

Siya Kolisa’s new autobiography is set to hit the shelves in September.

The Springbok rugby captain made the announcement this week, saying the book, titled Rise, was now available for pre-order.

“There are 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,” Kolisi said in a statement released by NB Publishers, which will distribute the book in SA.

“It was so important for me that my story was told from my own account and with the right publishing group.”

The book is written by British author Boris Starling and will be published ahead of the British and Irish Lions tour to SA.

Taking to Instagram, Kolisi said he wanted to give his fans the opportunity to read his real story after a book was released previously allegedly without his consent. “It is rare for a player to release an autobiography during their career but someone else had other ideas and released a book about me without my consent so I wanted to give you all the opportunity to read my real story,” he said.

“I believe in lifting as you rise and will be donating a portion of the proceeds towards community development around the country. Thanks for all your support, and God bless,” Kolisi said.

The book announcement comes months after his wife, Rachel, asked South Africans to “save Siya’s story” and boycott Siya Kolisi: Against All Odds, an unauthorised biography.

The book, written by Jeremy Daniel, was launched in August 2019.

Siya issued a statement at the time distancing himself from the book.

“To clear any confusion, the book published about me with my name on the cover wasn’t written by me or produced with my approval or even knowledge,” he said.