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Before the breakthrough: Anton Segner
Photo: Evan Barnes / Getty Images
Anton Segner runs his hand through his blond stubble hair before smiling into the camera of his laptop.
His face is sunburned and his right eye is puffy and blue.
"I tried to steal the ball and probably got a shoulder in the eye," he told SPIEGEL in a low voice: "But that's nothing if it's not a concussion."
A few days ago what Segner himself would not have thought possible for a long time happened: He made his debut in New Zealand professional rugby - as the first German ever.
Segner, 19 years old, 1.92 meters tall and 109 kilograms, has already come a long way on his way.
But he's not there yet: Segner wants to make it into the New Zealand national team, the glorious and legendary All Blacks.
Many now trust him to do that.
Anton Segner's sporting history began ten years ago in Frankfurt.
At that time he was overweight and had knock knees, and his soccer coach advised him against doing sports.
Through an English classmate, Segner got into rugby, which he quickly became enthusiastic about.
Segner says he often watched videos in the evenings of the haka, the Maori ritual dance that the New Zealand national team performs before each game.
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