Dimitri Yachvili

Who is Dimitri Yachvili?

Dimitri Yachvili is a French rugby union footballer who currently plays scrum-half for Biarritz and France.

Of Georgian descent, his father Michel Yachvili was a French international before him. His paternal grandfather was a Georgian POW during WWII in France who escaped and subsequently participated in the French Resistance in the province of Limousin. Dimitri's brother Grégoire chose to play for the Georgian national team.

Yachvili made his international debut in November 2002 in a 35–3 victory against Canada.

Since the retirement of Fabien Galthié, Yachvili has been in and out of the French starting 15.

During the 2005 Six Nations Championship he regained his position as the first choice scrum-half for the French national team, cementing his position with a virtuoso goal-kicking performance against England at Twickenham. He also captained the French national team, surrendering the captaincy permanently for the 2005 summer tour to South Africa, which he missed through injury.

He was considered the number two scrum-half behind Jean-Baptiste Élissalde in the French team who retired in May 2010. He is now second to Morgan Parra in the national selection as of the 2009 Six Nations.