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Guram Papidze

Guram Papidze
Date of birth (1997-06-16) June 16, 1997 (age 27)
Place of birthTbilisi, Georgia
Height1.86 m (6 ft 1 in)
Weight127 kg (20 st 0 lb)
Rugby union career
Position(s) Tighthead Prop
Senior career
Years Team Apps (Points)
2016-2018 Lyon OU 4 (0)
2018-2021 Nevers 38 (20)
2021-2022 La Rochelle 19 (5)
2022- Section Paloise 22 (5)
Correct as of 24 June 2022
International career
Years Team Apps (Points)
2016-2017 Georgia U20 5 (5)
2022- Georgia 0 (0)
Correct as of 24 June 2022

Guram Papidze (born June 16, 1997) in Tbilisi, Georgia is a Georgian rugby union player. He plays as Prop for Section Paloise in Top 14.[1]

Papidze began his career in France with Lyon OU before joining Nevers, which enabled him to be a JIFF player (joueurs issus des filières de formation, loosely translated as "academy-trained players").

Papidze has been a Georgian international since 2022, following his representation of the Georgia U20 in the 2017 World Rugby Under 20 Championship.[2]

Guram Papidze is part of the Georgia national rugby union team for the 2023 Rugby World Cup in France.[3]

Career

Club

Papidze first experienced French rugby at the age of eighteen with LOU alongside Antoine Nicoud. In 2018, he joined USON Nevers Rugby, where he spent three seasons, playing a total of 37 Pro D2 matches.[4]

During the 2021-2022 season, he participated in 19 Top 14 matches with 3 starts for Stade Rochelais.

Papidze joined Section Paloise at the beginning of the 2022–23 Top 14 season. During his first season at Pau, he went to on to play in 22 matches.[5]

National team

Papidze was a starting tighthead prop in the historic victory of Georgia against Wales at Cardiff's Millennium Stadium in November 2022.[6]

Personal life

Guram Papidze played water polo until the age of fifteen.[7]

He speaks perfect French and is a literature enthusiast, particularly favoring the works of Hugo, Balzac, Maupassant, as well as Dickens.[7]

He is also a passionate cinephile.[7]

References

  1. ^ "Ulster U20: Teams up for Ulster Development v Georgia U20 | The Front Row Union". The Front Row Union. 2016-11-18. Retrieved 2018-03-12.
  2. ^ worldrugby.org. "U20 Championship". www.worldrugby.org. Archived from the original on 2018-06-27. Retrieved 2018-03-12.
  3. ^ "Section Paloise : Beka Gorgadze et Guram Papidze parmi les 39 de la Géorgie pour la Coupe du monde". LaRepubliqueDesPyrenees (in French). 2023-06-21. Retrieved 2023-09-04.
  4. ^ Denat, Frédéric (2021-09-07). "Guram Papidze (La Rochelle) : " Pour un pilier, la Pro D2 est une bonne école "". Le Quotidien du Sport (in French). Retrieved 2023-09-04.
  5. ^ "Fiche de Guram Papidze (Pau), l'actu le palmares et les stats de Guram Papidze". L'Équipe (in French). Retrieved 2023-09-04.
  6. ^ "Wales 12-13 Georgia: Los Lelos pick up historic Test victory at the Principality Stadium in Cardiff". Sky Sports. Retrieved 2023-09-04.
  7. ^ a b c Lannessan, Georges (2022-01-09). "Top 14/Section Paloise. Guram Papidze, la tête la première" (in French). ISSN 1760-6454. Retrieved 2023-09-04.