Even though he was considered to be too small to play as flanker, standing at 5 ft 10 in (178 cm), he decisively proved the doubters wrong, and it was not long until his unmistakable talent gained attention from the national selectors.

Rives made his France debut against England in 1975, at the age of 22, marking the start of an international career that would take him to the very top in terms of both personal and team achievements.

[9][10] Rives captained France in 34 games, a world record at the time, and played in the teams which completed the Grand Slam in the (then) Five Nations Championship in 1977 and 1981.

The loudest criticism came from Libération, which found the documentary to be "evocative of a hagiography about a member of the Politburo, released by the Soviet news media".

[12] Jean-Pierre Rives was influential in France's bid to host the 2007 Rugby World Cup, and played a part in the trophy presentation following the tournament's final.

[14][15] A "legend", according to the BBC,[9] and "a blood-stained hero [who] remains an iconic presence to fans the world over", according to ESPN,[2] Jean-Pierre Rives' fame transcends sport.

[16] Other admirers included architect Jean Nouvel, who admits to not being a sports enthusiast,[17] television personality Maïtena Biraben, who calls him "her idol,"[18] and actor Hugh Jackman, who said of him, "I was pretty obsessed with rugby player Jean-Pierre Rives.

Rives' chosen media became painting and sculpture, which he took up when he was still a rugby player, after meeting a well-known French sculptor and Prix de Rome winner, Albert Feraud.

"In sports you make movement and you are maybe sculpting or painting in the space with your body," he told Clara Iaccarino of the Sydney Morning Herald.

"[4] He works in a disused railway shed in the north of Paris, where he forms and twists his found steel, manipulating the shapes created by the resulting positive and negative spaces.

Rives' sculptures were called by the French La Dépêche du Midi "a marvelous mixture of suffering, grace and beauty".

The impression is made by a mark or an indentation created by pressure, as if his sculptures were dipped in tar and paint and then pressed onto the surface of a canvas.

Jean-Pierre Rives' sculptures have been showcased at public venues around the world including the prestigious Jardin du Luxembourg in Paris, a stone's throw from the classical Senate building, in 2002.

[22][23] A widely attended and written about vernissage attracted many of France's powerful political and business leaders and, according to the influential Le Point, included "a pack of Rives' elite" – friends and collectors all – Serge Kampf, founder of Cap Gemini, Claude Bébéar, founder of AXA, Henri Lachmann, CEO of Schneider Electric, Jean-René Fourtou, Chairman of Vivendi, Pierre Dauzier, President of Havas and Thierry Breton Chairman of France Télécom and future Finance Minister.