Rachel Kolisi explains why she will never drop the Kolisi surname

2026-03-12 - 15:24

Rachel Kolisi recently opened up about why she will not be changing her surname following her divorce from Springbok captain Siya Kolisi. In a 947 interview this week, the fitness instructor and influencer said she is keeping the surname because of her children. “My children share the same surname as me, and travelling with my children, because they are brown, is already a big challenge,” she said. She added that changing her surname would make travel even more complicated. “Sometimes I get stopped at gates, and people want to double-check certain things, so it would be a really big challenge for me, so I’m keeping my surname,” she said. Rachel said she is often questioned about her children. “It’s also just the amount of times I’ve been asked, ‘Are those your kids?’, and I’m just, like, ‘Yes they are my kids’, and so if I change my surname, it’s going to be just as challenging.” View this post on Instagram A post shared by 947 (@947joburg) ALSO READ: ‘It’s time to move on’: Arno Greeff quits acting after 12 years Over a decade-long union Rachel and Siya Kolisi met in 2012 at a dinner party and began dating a year later. They married in 2016 after welcoming their first child, son Nicholas, and later had a daughter, Keziah, in 2017. The couple also took in Siya’s younger siblings, Liphelo and Liyema, after they were placed in an orphanage following their mother’s death. Rachel and Siya separated in late 2024. NOW READ: Mandisi Tshingana raises over R48K for the learner who was left without a pie and juice in the viral classroom video