 After three years in France he became eligible to play for "les Bleus" and Bernard Laporte named him in the French squad in 2001.He went on to win 21 French caps between 2001 and 2004, scoring 7 tries and helping France win the Grand Slam in 2002.Early in 2003 he was diagnosed with testicular cancer but overcame the disease after grueling months of chemotherapy sessions and rejoined the French team, reaching the semi-final stage of the 2003 Rugby World Cup.