Ernie Els pays tribute to Joost

Cape Town - South African golf superstar Ernie Els has joined the chorus of sporting greats who've paid tribute to Springbok star, Joost van der Westhuizen.

Van der Westhuizen lost his battle with motor neuron disease on Monday, aged 45.

Els expressed his sorrow at the "passing of one of our greats" on his Twitter page.

Van der Westhuizen, who was diagnosed with the illness 2011, played 89 Tests for the Springboks between 1993 and 2003.

He scored a then-Springbok record 38 tries and is widely regarded as one of the game’s finest-ever scrumhalves.

Very sad to hear of the passing of one of our greats. #joostvanderwesthuizen you faught a great fight.

— Ernie Els (@TheBig_Easy) February 6, 2017