1981 South Africa rugby union tour of New Zealand and the United States the choice of either fielding a team not selected by race, or not touring South Africa: South African rugby authorities continued to select Springbok players by race. As a result, the Norman Kirk Labour Government prevented the Springboks from touring during 1973. In response, the NZRFU protested about the involvement of "politics in sport". In 1976, the All Blacks toured South Africa with the blessing of the newly elected New Zealand Prime Minister, Robert Muldoon. Twenty-five African nations protested against this by boycotting the 1976 Summer Olympics in Montreal. In their view the All Black tour gave tacit support to
History of the South Africa national rugby union team Olympics in protest, and the next year, in 1977, the Commonwealth signed the Gleneagles Agreement, which discouraged any sporting contact with South Africa. In response to the growing pressure the segregated South African rugby unions merged in 1977. Four years later Errol Tobias would become the first non-white South African to represent his country when he took the field against Ireland. A planned 1979 Springbok tour of France was stopped by the French government, who announced that it was inappropriate for South African teams to tour France. The Lions toured South Africa in 1980. The team completed a flawless non-Test