The baby born on the last day apartheid could still draw legislated oxygen has graduated from poster boy to book cover for a SA that still lives in hope.
To those closest to him Siya Kolisi is father, husband and son but to the rest of the world he is the Springbok captain that continues to carry a back-breaking burden.
He turned 30 in June and though he has already condensed a lifetime's worth of experience into that time, Kolisi says he is still on a voyage of discovery.
Kolisi, the Rugby World Cup winning captain from 2019, has added a few more chapters to his remarkable story. Some of it involves completing his autobiography, "Rise", which was released last week.
Significantly too this year he led the Springboks out of their Covid-19 enforced hibernation and their interminable experience in lockdown, bio bubbles, self-isolation and quarantine.
He too had a one-on-one Covid.
In Cape Town this week the increasingly urbane Kolisi, as an ambassador of his apparel sponsor, spoke of the mental anguish he experienced during the Springboks' much anticipated series against the British & Irish Lions. The hosts won the series, fraught with controversy and acrimony, 2-1.
Though he said winning the series was a highlight, it took its toll.
"Especially with everything that was happening that second week. Things get so intense in rugby in SA. It's not like any other sport. People connect with rugby differently. The second week was tough," said Kolisi about the week that followed the Boks defeat in the first Test.
It was a week of recrimination, finger pointing and viral videos.
"Mental health-wise it was tough," said Kolisi. "You think if you lose the next game everything is going to end. Those kinds of pressures are really difficult. I cried that week. We pulled together and we won."
Leading from the front with some staggeringly good performances Kolisi helped the Boks run the All Blacks close before beating them. He described the three defeats in the weeks leading up to the win as "horrible". Those defeats also drew vitriol and cast a shadow over the world champions and the top-ranked team in the global rankings. While some pundits and many fans fought frenzied fingertip battles over social media, Kolisi engaged in a practice far more in tune with the game's ethos and values.
"I'm nothing without New Zealand and New Zealand is nothing without SA," he said matter of factly.
"People expect us to hate each other. We are human beings. Yes, I want to beat them and I encourage myself (to do that) each and every time. After the 80 minutes we can sit and be normal and talk.
"I can't tell people how to think, but it is a game. Yes, it's an important game because you are representing your country. Trust me, I'm not going to go half-heartedly because I'm going up against my friend Ardie Savea.
"On the Friday before the game we spoke. We then said we'd smash each other in the game.
"Some people just want to be in that (combat) zone all the time. I can't be like that. It's too tiring."
Kolisi also found time to hang out with the Aussies once the quarantine was lifted.
He went to church with Samu Kerevi and other Wallabies and found time to hang out with Quade Cooper. "He thought being a Wallaby was who he is. That changed because it was taken away and then you ask 'who are you?' without that jersey. You question identity."
Kolisi said it is making those connections and establishing camaraderie that should draw kids to the sport.
Similarly, the story of tennis star Naomi Osaka also resonated with the Bok captain.
The toughest was being in hotel rooms for four months. You only talk to your kids through the phone
"That makes me happy because the person knows they are more important than what they do. People just value you for what you do and not who you are.
"To choose yourself over a big tournament shows courage. I like that. We all want to be heroes but sometimes you have to choose you," stressed Kolisi.
He speaks passionately about women's sport and the need for equal recognition. "When I look on TV all I see is 'Ronaldo', 'Messi', all these men but there are so many women who are killing it, working even harder than us because they know they have to go the extra mile."
Perhaps more than before, he and his teammates were also challenged mentally this year.
"The toughest was being in hotel rooms for four months. You only talk to your kids through the phone. Obviously Rachel (his wife) doesn't buy data so she would call and ask 'please buy me R5's data'. Those are the things I had to do," Kolisi quipped.
Being away from home for that long took a mental toll but the Boks have help on hand through MyPlayers (players representative body). "We have Ismaeel Dollie, he also played rugby. When you have to sit in your room the whole time your mind is definitely not healthy. We are pretty strong but it catches up with you if you don't do anything about it.
"Some guys use it, others don't. I read my devotion and my faith keeps me sane.
"We also talk to each other. Some guys love it."
The Springbok captaincy is weighty enough but Kolisi is forever driven by a higher purpose. He sees himself in the struggle of others and is drawn to their plight.
"Sometimes I wake up and I want to tell Rachel I can't do this any more. I'm too sore. But then you think what can you do to make SA a better place.
"How can you get people believing they can achieve the impossible?"
"Impossible is nothing" is the slogan of his apparel sponsor and in that regard, in Kolisi, they have an ambassador who has earned his stripes three times over.
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