Gaël Fickou (born 26 March 1994) is a French professional rugby union player who plays as a centre for Top 14 club Toulon and the France national team.
Club career Fickou made his Heineken Cup debut on 14 October 2012, scoring the only try of the game in a win against Leicester Tigers. His lithe movement, balance and pace for his size has seen him compared to English rugby legend Jeremy Guscott.
According to Toulouse and France teammate, Maxime Médard, Fickou "is one of the 10 best centres in the world and soon he will be number one. He reminds me of Sonny Bill Williams: tall, athletic, technical, with a good hand-off and a feel for the game. He has everything."Six Nations 2014: France eagerly await another burst of speed from zero-to-hero Gaël Fickou, by Hugh Godwin, The Independent, dated 9 February 2014.
After spending six seasons with Toulouse, he signed with Stade Français for the start of the 2018–19 season.France centre Gael Fickou joins Stade Francais, uncredited author, "Sky Sports", dated 29 May 2018.
On 22 March 2021, Fickou would leave Stade Français to join with Top 14 rivals Racing 92 ahead of the 2021–22 season.
International career He made his French international debut at the age of 18 against Scotland on 16 March 2013 in the RBS 6 Nations.
Fickou scored his first try for France against England during the 2014 Six Nations.
Career statistics List of international tries + International tries DateVenueOpponentScoreResultCompetition11 February 2014Stade de France, Saint-Denis, France24–2426–24223 September 2015Olympic Stadium, London, England36–1138–11313 March 2016Murrayfield Stadium, Edinburgh, Scotland18–1029–18412 November 2016Stadium de Toulouse, Toulouse, France43–852–8512 February 2017Stade de France, Saint-Denis, France11–522–16620 March 2017Stadio Olimpico, Rome, Italy8–1118–40717 March 2018Millennium Stadium, Cardiff, Wales11–814–13821 September 2019Tokyo Stadium, Chōfu, Japan5–323–2192 October 2019Fukuoka Hakatanomori Stadium, Fukuoka, Japan17–933–9106 February 2021Stadio Olimpico, Rome, Italy3–1510–501126 February 2022Murrayfield Stadium, Edinburgh, Scotland10–1717–361219 March 2022Stade de France, Saint-Denis, France8–025–131326 February 2023Stade de France, Saint-Denis, France30–2132–211418 March 2023Stade de France, Saint-Denis, France32–741–281510 February 2024Murrayfield Stadium, Edinburgh, Scotland13–816–201610 March 2024Millennium Stadium, Cardiff, Wales10–11 24–451716 March 2024Parc Olympique Lyonnais, Lyon, France28–24 33–31
Honours France 2× Six Nations Championship: 2022, 2025 1× Grand Slam: 2022
Personal life Born in France, Fickou is one of six children. His father is originally from Casamance in Senegal and his mother is French of Pied-Noir descent.
References
External links
France profile at FFR ERC profile