France winger Louis Bielle-Biarrey was on Wednesday enjoying a double accolade after he was named as the fans' player of the 2026 Six Nations rugby union competition and saluted for scoring the best try of the campaign.
The 21-year-old claimed 65 percent of the fan vote to see off England’s Tommy Freeman, Scotland’s Blair Kinghorn and the 2024 winner Tommaso Menoncello from Italy.
Bielle-Biarrey joins his skipper Antoine Dupont as the only Frenchmen to have won the prize of best player since it was first awarded in 2004.
He was presented with his prize by his Bordeaux Bègles and France teammate Maxime Lucu.
During the 2026 competition, Bielle-Biarrey became the first player to score eight tries in a single edition of the Six Nations which was created in 2000 when Italy joined France, Scotland, Wales, England and Ireland for the annual rugby competition.
Bielle-Biarrey's pyrotechnics in the five matches in February and March eclipsed the feats of Jacob Stockdale in 2018 for Ireland.
"I was thinking: 'This try is really good for us' because we were not in a good place in the game," he said of the try against Scotland that allowed him to surpass Stockdale's record.
"We'd had a bit of trouble in the first-half so I was happy to score and get closer to the Six Nations title."
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The score gave France a 23-13 lead at the Stade de France. The hosts, cheered on by 70,000 partisans, ran in two more tries to cruise away from the Scots and also notch up a Six Nations high of 30 tries to surpass the 29 registered by England during their surge to the 2001 crown.
"I'm very happy to have won the trophy and that people have voted for me," added Bielle-Biarrey.
"But it's also a reward for the whole of the French team during this tournament. There were other records that were beaten so it's not just me. It's the hard work of the team."
Bielle-Biarrey's effort that won "try of the tournament" came on 8 March in the match against defending champions Ireland who were seeking an unprecedented third consecutive Six Nations title.
Collecting a high pass on the left wing, he ran a few yards and then kicked the ball behind the two players who were coming in to tackle him.
He exploded past them to collect the ball and touch it down beyond the try line to give France a 20-13 lead at the Aviva Stadium.
"I don't know if it was the best try," said Bielle-Biarrey. "But it was one of the most important. It was a good time to score against Ireland. We had a difficult first-half and mentally this try was really good for the team."
The effort gained 50 percent of 19,600 votes that were cast.
Bielle-Biarrey, who made his France debut in August 2023 against Scotland, finished the 2026 Six Nations tournament with his 19th cap and his try tally on 18 - only 20 behind joint record-holder Damien Penaud who has scored 38 in 56 games for France.
"It's really Bordeaux that has made me a professional player," Bielle-Biarrey added. "I arrived at the club when I was barely 18-years-old after finishing a Six Nations tournament with the France under-20 side.
"I had some physical qualities but in terms of the game and the technique, it's really Bordeaux that has trained me so I'm very grateful to the club, the staff and the players who have transmitted a lot to me."
