When physical punishment is part of the job description, wheres the line? [Video]

In the lead-up to the 2003 Rugby World Cup, the Springboks took preparation to a previously unseen level. Soon after the squad was selected for the tournament, then coach Rudolf Straeuli arranged a “team building” military-style boot camp, set in the South African bush and run by former SA Police Services Task Force members.

What went down during the three-day Kamp Staaldraad (Camp Barbed Wire) would not be allowed on any reality TV show. The players were forced to army crawl naked across gravel, pump up rugby balls while submerged in a freezing lake, threatened at gunpoint if they tried to get out, and starved for several days with little water.

They were left in the bush alone overnight with a match each to cook – but not eat – a chicken and an egg. Instructors later …