| Date of birth | 18 December 1973 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Height | 1.74 m (5 ft 8+1⁄2 in) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Weight | 90 kg (198 lb; 14 st 2 lb) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Rugby union career | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Romeo Ștefan Gontineac (born 18 December 1973 in Hlipiceni, Botoşani) is a Romanian rugby union coach and former player who played as a centre. He currently coaches Aurillac.[1]
Gontineac played for Universitatea Cluj (1993–96) in Romania, South Western Districts (1996), in South Africa. He moved to France, where he played for FC Grenoble (1996–97), Section Paloise (1997–98) and Aurillac (1998–2010), where he finished his playing career.
Gontineac has 76 caps for Romania, with 13 tries scored, 68 points in aggregate. He played all the matches for Romania in four Rugby World Cup finals, in 1995, 1999, 2003 and 2007. He also captained his country on several occasions.[2]
In May 2010, he was appointed as head coach of the Romanian national team replacing Serge Lairle of France. Gontineac called upon the services of former All Blacks Steve McDowall to be his assistant coach in the qualifyings for the 2011 Rugby World Cup. Romania qualified but disappointed at the finals, being unable to win a single match for the first time since 1995.[citation needed]
His son Taylor is also a professional rugby union player.[citation needed]