Just over two years ago, Schalk Burger was fighting for his life in hospital. What should have been a fairly routine draining of a cyst near his spinal cord resulted in the Springbok contracting bacterial meningitis. He ended up isolated in intensive care, fighting for his life.

“There was a critical stage for nearly five days in which there was a lot of uncertainty. I was in isolation and I was seriously ill; so ill, in fact, that some people around me thought ‘this is it’,” Burger recalls. His parents were called to the hospital to say ‘goodbye’.

“They couldn’t pinpoint exactly what bug it was. I was basically lying in isolation in a room and not able to do much.

“I had headaches, nausea and I was getting quite a lot of convulsions – not quite seizures, but it was certainly close – so I was seriously ill and that was just unfortunate. I suppose when you make a hole anywhere, there is the chance of infection and getting a bug. That was the serious part, and that happened just after the first procedure, so it was just bad luck on my behalf,” he said.

That Burger remained grounded enough to brush off the bug as simply “bad luck” is remarkable in itself, but his comeback from serious illness was even more remarkable, and on Wednesday it earned him the 2015 Laureus Award for “Comeback of the Year”.

Not only did Burger survive a brush with death, but he defied all the odds and all the medical opinions which told him that he would probably never play rugby again and, if he did, he certainly wouldn’t play at the same pace and level he did before. But for Burger, no challenge is too big. He started his comeback with an exhibition game for the Barbarians in December 2013 and then returned to competitive action with the Stormers in the early stages of the 2014 Super Rugby season. Before too long, he’d earned himself a recall to the Bok side to play against Wales. Not long after, he was picked for the side to play against Australia and New Zealand in the Rugby Championship, and came off the bench to inspire South Africa to an unlikely win at Newlands. To cap off a remarkable return, he scored the decisive try against England at Twickenham in November 2014, an effort which earned him a Man of the Match award.

It’s been one seriously wild ride for the legendary number six, and in typical light-hearted fashion, he joked that he would “definitely be having a few beers tonight” after he received his Laureus award. But it’s a journey that’s far from over.

In March, Burger played his 100^th Super Rugby game for the Stormers, almost two years to the day after he was first hospitalised with the life-threatening illness. But making comebacks is nothing new to the “Hulk Burger”. Back in 2006, he sustained a serious neck injury, needing a cervical fusion operation. Even then, he was told that he could possibly never play rugby again. After endless rehab, he returned to the Stormers in January 2007, and later that year played a pivotal part in helping the Springboks win their second Rugby World Cup. In 2010, during the Currie Cup final between the Sharks and Western Province, Burger played with a broken rib, without being taken off, and he managed a try in WP’s losing cause. Anybody who has ever broken a rib will attest that simply breathing is one of the most painful things you can do, never mind run around being tackled on a rugby field. The injury would ultimately rule him out of the Springboks’ end of year tour, but it certainly didn’t do any damage to his reputation as South Africa’s King of Comebacks.

Laureus World Sports Academy Member and All Blacks rugby legend Sean Fitzpatrick said: “The story of Schalk’s recovery is amazing. He not only survived such a serious illness, but in a relatively short time he was back in the Springboks team and winning matches for them. What a great tribute to his fighting spirit. All he needs now to complete this remarkable comeback is to have a wonderful World Cup later this year.”

Burger’s return has underscored not only his greatness and versatility as a player, having been forced to reinvent his game due to a lesser physical impact during attack in the initial stages of his comeback. However, this has also underlined what a great ambassador he is for the game. Oh, and, of course, he has to jet back from Shanghai in time for the Stormers’ game this weekend. DM

Photo: South African rugby player Schalk Burger poses with his Laureus World Comeback of the Year trophy during the 2015 Laureus Sports Awards ceremony at Shanghai Grand Theater, in Shanghai, China, 15 April 2015. The Laureus Media Prize is attributed to people that have made an impact to the world of sport. EPA/WU HONG