Bernard Laporte
Encyclopedia
Bernard Laporte is a rugby union
coach and former French Secretary of State for Sport. He is currently the head coach at Toulon
, having taken over in 2011 from Philippe Saint-André
, who had been named the new head coach of the France national team
. Laporte himself is a former head coach of France, serving in that role from 1999 to 2007. He was previously the coach at Stade Français. He was the first fully professional head coach of France.
He played rugby union at scrum-half and won the French Under-21 championship with UA Gaillac
in 1983 and then again in 1984, in which he was captain. Seven years later he captained Begles-Bordeaux to the French championship.
Laporte's first coaching role was in the early 1990s, when he was assistant coach of the Stade Bordelais University club between 1993 and 1995. He took over at Stade Français in 1995, who were in the third division at the time. He took them right up to the first division in three seasons, winning the respective championships. The club were crowned champions of France in 1998, when they defeated USA Perpignan
34 to seven at Stade de France
.
Laporte took over as head coach of the national team at the end of 1999. His first task was the 2000 Six Nations Championship
, the first of its format, since the addition of Italy
. Laporte drew on the experience of the 1999 Rugby World Cup
, where France had been losing finalists (to Australia
). Laporte named Fabien Pelous
as captain. In France's first game under Laporte, they defeated Wales
36–3. France ended up winning three of their five matches which saw them finish second, behind winners England
.
The following season, France fell to fifth place in the 2001 Six Nations Championship
, winning only two of their five matches; against Scotland
and Italy
. However, the following year, Laporte took France to victory in the 2002 Six Nations Championship
- not only winning the tournament, but completing a grand slam
.
After the massive success at the 2002 Six Nations, France fell to third place in the subsequent tournament
, though they still won three of their five matches. France finished top of their pool at the 2003 Rugby World Cup
in Australia
winning all four of their pool matches. France then defeated Ireland
43–21 in the quarter-finals to move into the semi-finals. They were defeated 24–7 by England in the semi-final and moved on to the third/fourth place play-off, which they lost to the All Blacks, and thus finished fourth at the World Cup.
After the strong showing at the World Cup, France reproduced their Six Nations success of 2002 at the 2004 Six Nations Championship
. France won all five of their matches to win the tournament and complete another grand slam. France finished second, behind Wales in the 2005 Six Nations Championship
, and the following year at the 2006 tournament
, France won again, getting their third Six Nations trophy under Laporte.
After eight years in charge of the French national team, he resigned as coach following the 2007 Rugby World Cup
. In his final Six Nations Championship
in charge of France, his team won four out of their five games and emerged champions after edging out Ireland
on points difference.
It was announced on June 19, 2007, that after the Rugby World Cup in October, Laporte would be named Secretary of State for Youth and Sports in the government of François Fillon. He was appointed on October 22, 2007 as Secretary of State for Sports only. He left this office on June 23, 2009 and was succeeded by Rama Yade
.
Following his stint in the French cabinet, he returned to coaching at Bayonne
in 2010, but lasted only two months. Laporte was then involved with Stade Français until being signed by Toulon.
each Friday, Direct Laporte.
Rugby union
Rugby union, often simply referred to as rugby, is a full contact team sport which originated in England in the early 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand...
coach and former French Secretary of State for Sport. He is currently the head coach at Toulon
RC Toulonnais
RC Toulonnais is a French professional rugby union club based in Toulon in Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur...
, having taken over in 2011 from Philippe Saint-André
Philippe Saint-André
Philippe Georges Saint-André is a former French rugby union footballer who earned 69 test caps for France between 1990 and 1997, 34 of them as captain. His preferred position was wing but he could also play at Fullback. After retiring, Saint-André found success as a rugby coach in both England and...
, who had been named the new head coach of the France national team
France national rugby union team
The France national rugby union team represents France in rugby union. They compete annually against England, Ireland, Italy, Scotland and Wales in the Six Nations Championship. They have won the championship outright sixteen times, shared it a further eight times, and have completed nine grand slams...
. Laporte himself is a former head coach of France, serving in that role from 1999 to 2007. He was previously the coach at Stade Français. He was the first fully professional head coach of France.
He played rugby union at scrum-half and won the French Under-21 championship with UA Gaillac
UA Gaillac
Union Athlétique Gaillac is a French rugby union club currently competing in the Fédérale 3 league, the third level of the French amateur league system, after having been forcibly relegated from the second level of the French professional league due to serious financial problems...
in 1983 and then again in 1984, in which he was captain. Seven years later he captained Begles-Bordeaux to the French championship.
Laporte's first coaching role was in the early 1990s, when he was assistant coach of the Stade Bordelais University club between 1993 and 1995. He took over at Stade Français in 1995, who were in the third division at the time. He took them right up to the first division in three seasons, winning the respective championships. The club were crowned champions of France in 1998, when they defeated USA Perpignan
USA Perpignan
Union Sportive des Arlequins Perpignanais or Unió eSportiva Arlequins de Perpinyà , generally abbreviated as USAP in both languages, is a French rugby union club that plays in the city of Perpignan in Pyrénées-Orientales. The club currently competes in the Top 14, the top level of the French...
34 to seven at Stade de France
Stade de France
The Stade de France is the national stadium of France, situated just north of Paris in the commune of Saint-Denis. It has an all-seater capacity of 80,000, making it the fifth largest stadium in Europe, and is used by both the France national football team and French rugby union team for...
.
Laporte took over as head coach of the national team at the end of 1999. His first task was the 2000 Six Nations Championship
2000 Six Nations Championship
The 2000 Six Nations Championship was the first series of the Six Nations Championship, following the inclusion of Italy into the Five Nations championship. Including the previous incarnations as the Home Nations and Five Nations, this was the hundred-and-sixth series of the northern hemisphere...
, the first of its format, since the addition of Italy
Italy national rugby union team
The Italy national rugby union team represent the nation of Italy in the sport of rugby union. The team is also known as the Azzurri . Italy have been playing international rugby since the late 1920s, and since 2000 compete annually in the Six Nations Championship with England, France, Ireland,...
. Laporte drew on the experience of the 1999 Rugby World Cup
1999 Rugby World Cup
The 1999 Rugby World Cup was the fourth Rugby World Cup, and the first to be held in rugby union's professional era. The principal host nation was Wales, although the majority of matches were played outside the country, shared between England, France, Scotland and Ireland...
, where France had been losing finalists (to Australia
Australia national rugby union team
The Australian national rugby union team is the representative side of Australia in rugby union. The national team is nicknamed the Wallabies and competes annually with New Zealand and South Africa in the Tri-Nations Series, in which they also contest the Bledisloe Cup with New Zealand and the...
). Laporte named Fabien Pelous
Fabien Pelous
Fabien Pelous is a retired French rugby union footballer. A lock who also occasionally played as a number eight and flanker, he played almost all of his professional career for Stade Toulousain, and is the all-time leader in appearances for the French national team...
as captain. In France's first game under Laporte, they defeated Wales
Wales national rugby union team
The Wales national rugby union team represent Wales in international rugby union tournaments. They compete annually in the Six Nations Championship with England, France, Ireland, Italy and Scotland. Wales have won the Six Nations and its predecessors 24 times outright, second only to England with...
36–3. France ended up winning three of their five matches which saw them finish second, behind winners England
England national rugby union team
The England national rugby union team represents England in rugby union. They compete in the annual Six Nations Championship with France, Ireland, Scotland, Italy, and Wales. They have won this championship on 26 occasions, 12 times winning the Grand Slam, making them the most successful team in...
.
The following season, France fell to fifth place in the 2001 Six Nations Championship
2001 Six Nations Championship
The 2001 Six Nations Championship was the second series of the Six Nations Championship. Including the previous incarnations as the Home Nations and Five Nations, this was the hundred-and-seventh series of the northern hemisphere rugby union championship. The tournament was marred by an outbreak of...
, winning only two of their five matches; against Scotland
Scotland national rugby union team
The Scotland national rugby union team represent Scotland in international rugby union. Rugby union in Scotland is administered by the Scottish Rugby Union. The Scotland rugby union team is currently ranked eighth in the IRB World Rankings as of 19 September 2011...
and Italy
Italy national rugby union team
The Italy national rugby union team represent the nation of Italy in the sport of rugby union. The team is also known as the Azzurri . Italy have been playing international rugby since the late 1920s, and since 2000 compete annually in the Six Nations Championship with England, France, Ireland,...
. However, the following year, Laporte took France to victory in the 2002 Six Nations Championship
2002 Six Nations Championship
The 2002 Six Nations Championship was the third series of the Six Nations Championship. Including the previous incarnations as the Home Nations and Five Nations, this was the hundred-and-eighth series of the northern hemisphere rugby union championship...
- not only winning the tournament, but completing a grand slam
Grand Slam (Rugby Union)
In rugby union, a Grand Slam occurs when one team in the Six Nations Championship manages to beat all the others during one year's competition...
.
After the massive success at the 2002 Six Nations, France fell to third place in the subsequent tournament
2003 Six Nations Championship
The 2003 Six Nations Championship was the fourth series of the Six Nations Championship. Including the previous incarnations as the Home Nations and Five Nations, this was the hundred-and-ninth series of the northern hemisphere rugby union championship...
, though they still won three of their five matches. France finished top of their pool at the 2003 Rugby World Cup
2003 Rugby World Cup
The 2003 Rugby World Cup was the fifth Rugby World Cup and was won by England. Originally planned to be co-hosted by Australia and New Zealand, all games were shifted to Australia following a contractual dispute over ground signage rights between the New Zealand Rugby Football Union and Rugby World...
in Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
winning all four of their pool matches. France then defeated Ireland
Ireland national rugby union team
The Ireland national rugby union team represents the island of Ireland in rugby union. The team competes annually in the Six Nations Championship and every four years in the Rugby World Cup, where they reached the quarter-final stage in all but two competitions The Ireland national rugby union...
43–21 in the quarter-finals to move into the semi-finals. They were defeated 24–7 by England in the semi-final and moved on to the third/fourth place play-off, which they lost to the All Blacks, and thus finished fourth at the World Cup.
After the strong showing at the World Cup, France reproduced their Six Nations success of 2002 at the 2004 Six Nations Championship
2004 Six Nations Championship
The 2004 Six Nations Championship was the fifth series of the rugby union Six Nations Championship to be held since the competition expanded in 2000 to include Italy. Including the previous incarnations as the Home Nations and Five Nations, this was the hundred-and-tenth series of the northern...
. France won all five of their matches to win the tournament and complete another grand slam. France finished second, behind Wales in the 2005 Six Nations Championship
2005 Six Nations Championship
The 2005 RBS 6 Nations Championship was the sixth series of the Six Nations Championship to be held since the competition expanded in 2000 to include Italy...
, and the following year at the 2006 tournament
2006 Six Nations Championship
The 2006 RBS 6 Nations Championship was the seventh series of the rugby union Six Nations Championship to be held since the competition expanded in 2000 to include Italy...
, France won again, getting their third Six Nations trophy under Laporte.
After eight years in charge of the French national team, he resigned as coach following the 2007 Rugby World Cup
2007 Rugby World Cup
The 2007 Rugby World Cup was the sixth Rugby World Cup, a quadrennial international rugby union competition inaugurated in 1987. Twenty nations competed for the Webb Ellis Cup in the tournament, which was hosted by France from 7 September to 20 October. France won the hosting rights in 2003,...
. In his final Six Nations Championship
2007 Six Nations Championship
The 2007 RBS 6 Nations Championship was the eighth series of the rugby union Six Nations Championship. Including the previous incarnations as the Home Nations and Five Nations, this was the 113th series of the northern hemisphere rugby union championship...
in charge of France, his team won four out of their five games and emerged champions after edging out Ireland
Ireland national rugby union team
The Ireland national rugby union team represents the island of Ireland in rugby union. The team competes annually in the Six Nations Championship and every four years in the Rugby World Cup, where they reached the quarter-final stage in all but two competitions The Ireland national rugby union...
on points difference.
It was announced on June 19, 2007, that after the Rugby World Cup in October, Laporte would be named Secretary of State for Youth and Sports in the government of François Fillon. He was appointed on October 22, 2007 as Secretary of State for Sports only. He left this office on June 23, 2009 and was succeeded by Rama Yade
Rama Yade
Rama Yade is a French politician who served in the government of France from 2007 to 2010. She was Secretary of State for Sports and married to Joseph Zimet - son of Yiddish singer Ben Zimet, an adviser to Secretary of State Jean-Marie Bockel.- Early life :Yade was born in Ouakam, Senegal. She...
.
Following his stint in the French cabinet, he returned to coaching at Bayonne
Aviron Bayonnais
Aviron Bayonnais is a French rugby union club from Bayonne in Pyrénées-Atlantiques that currently competes in the top level of the French league system, in the Top 14 competition...
in 2010, but lasted only two months. Laporte was then involved with Stade Français until being signed by Toulon.
Trivia
He participates in a programme of RMC-InfoRadio Monte Carlo
Radio Monte Carlo is the name of six radio stations owned and managed by three different entities:*RMC Info is a French-speaking station, broadcasting in France and Monaco from Paris with some contributions from Monaco. Radio Monte-Carlo was one of 23 founding broadcasting organisations of the...
each Friday, Direct Laporte.