Dimitri Yachvili
Dimitri Yachvili Markarian is a French former rugby union footballer who played as a scrum-half for Biarritz and France.
Of Georgian and Armenian 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 - whilst his maternal grandfather was an Armenian Genocide survivor.
He began his club career at Gloucester Rugby where he was a replacement in the 2002 Zurich Championship Final in which Gloucester defeated Bristol Rugby.
Yachvili made his international debut in November 2002 in a 35–3 victory against Canada.
Since the retirement of Fabien Galthié, Yachvili was frequently part of the French starting 15.
During the 2005 Six Nations Championship he gained 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 was second to Morgan Parra in the national selection as of the 2009 Six Nations. He was omitted from the squad for the 2007 World Cup.
He lost his second Heineken Cup final to Stade Toulousain in May 2010. He was also part of the losing side in the 2006 final to Munster at Cardiff's Millennium Stadium.
Yachvili was a member of the French team that finished as the runner-up to hosts New Zealand in the 2011 Rugby World Cup Final.
