16 Facts About Rudi Koertzen

Rudolf Eric Koertzen was a South African international cricket umpire and former cricketer.

Rudi Koertzen began umpiring in 1981, before becoming a full-time official eleven years later.

Rudi Koertzen was born in Knysna, Cape Province, Union of South Africa, on 26 March 1949.

Rudi Koertzen worked as a railway clerk in Port Elizabeth, before being employed in the construction industry.

Rudi Koertzen started umpiring in 1981, before becoming a full-time umpire in 1992, when he was 43 years old.

Rudi Koertzen officiated in his first One Day International on 9 December 1992, and in his first Test match later the same month.

Rudi Koertzen soon became well known for his manner of giving batters out.

Rudi Koertzen became a full-time International Cricket Council umpire in 1997, and was one of the original members of the Elite Panel of ICC Umpires when it was founded in 2002.

Rudi Koertzen became the second umpire, after Steve Bucknor, to stand in 100 Test matches with the second Test of the 2009 Ashes between England and Australia at Lord's on 16 July 2009, and eventually officiated in 108 Tests.

Rudi Koertzen was one of the on-field umpires for the final of the ICC Champions Trophy in both 2004 and 2006, and was selected to umpire in the ICC Super Series in 2005, along with Simon Taufel, Aleem Dar and Darrell Hair.

Rudi Koertzen's professionalism saw him through some controversial moments: in September 1999, he refused a bribe to fix the outcome of the final of the Singapore Challenge between the West Indies and India, and in January 2000, he stood in the Test match between South Africa and England at Centurion, where both teams forfeited an innings in order to force a result after South African captain Hansie Cronje had been approached by a bookmaker.

Rudi Koertzen was highly regarded by the players: he was voted the top umpire in 2002, and was nominated for the ICC Umpire of the Year award in 2005 and 2006, on both occasions finishing third behind Taufel and Aleem Dar.

On 4 June 2010, Rudi Koertzen announced that he would be retiring from umpiring after the Test series between Australia and Pakistan in England that summer.

Rudi Koertzen was part of ICC's elite panel of umpires for a duration of eight years from 2002 to 2010 and by the time when he retired, he held the world record for having officiated in most international matches as an umpire.

Rudi Koertzen died in a car accident near Riversdale, Western Cape, on 9 August 2022; while driving back from a golfing weekend in Cape Town to his family home in Despatch, Eastern Cape, the car he was travelling in was involved in a head-on collision that killed three other people.

Rudi Koertzen was the first umpire to earn all three of these awards.