Former Springbok lock Kobus Wiese will be spending at least the next three days in hospital following a heart procedure, with his great friend and fellow Springbok Toks van der Linde describing the ordeal as a "major wake-up call".
The 1995 World Cup-winner was rushed to hospital on Tuesday night after he started feeling unwell before suffering a significant heart attack.
Following a bout of tests, he was admitted to the Mediclinic Panorama hospital in Cape Town, where a stent was put in to correct a narrowed artery in the early hours of Wednesday.
He'll now be monitored for 72 hours.
Toks van der Linde expressed his gratitude that his mate is "fine and stable".
"We pray that he gets better. Kobus is mentally very strong. I really think he will survive it," he told Cape Talk.
"He can't take calls in the ICU, but we're whatsapping each other and I'm in contact with his wife, Belinda. I told him too that he's got a second chance now and needs to look after himself.
"I didn't sleep last night. I was so drained. But Kobus is a strong character."
Some of his other friends also wished him a speedy recovery.
Ek dink aan jou en bid vir jou en jou familie uncle @4KobusWiese ??????????????????????#kobuswiese#ssrugby pic.twitter.com/dqHeyJpY68
— Ethienne Reynecke (@ettasreynecke) April 8, 2021
My friend Kobus Wiese you have given us all one hell of a fright but I have no doubt that with God's healing power you will be as right as rain very shortly.
— Robbie Schlemmer (@rlschlemmer) April 8, 2021
Wiese played 18 Tests for the Springboks and is considered a Lions legend, having made 128 appearances for the team and playing a key role in their golden era under Kitch Christie in the early 1990s.