The heaviest players at the Rugby World Cup

The 2023 Rugby World Cup is well under way and we've already seen some of the world's biggest stars showing what they can do in France.

By 'biggest' stars, we're not meaning the likes of Antoine Dupont or Siya Kolisi or Ardie Savea. Oh no, we mean world rugby's largest players, who are making their presence felt on the grandest stage of all.

While it would be an understatement to say that there are some big lads in all 20 forward packs in the competition, some are larger than others - with one in particular making the others look relatively puny.

But who is the World Cup's biggest heavyweight? We've scoured through World Rugby's data and picked out the five heaviest players at the tournament.

5. Romain Taofifenua (France) - 136kg

The towering Frenchman stands at a whopping 6ft 8in and weighs in at 136kg (21st 6lbs). His huge size nearly got him in trouble in France's second game of the World Cup, as the Lyon man looked to go high on Uruguayan scrum-half Santiago Arata, but he was spared a red card.

4. Will Skelton (Australia) - 140kg

Like Taofifenua, the Wallabies skipper is an absolute giant, also standing at 6ft 8in but weighing in at 140kg (22st). While at Saracens, the club's director of rugby Mark McCall described Skelton as the ‘biggest human’ he had ever seen, with the lock putting away 3,200 calories on a game day.

3. Tamaiti Williams (New Zealand) - 144kg

He may only be 23 years old, but one of the All Blacks' rising stars already tips the scales at 144kg (22st 9lbs). While he also stands at an impressive 6ft 4in, Williams is quick on his feet for a player of his size and is set to have an important role to play for New Zealand in the coming years.

2. Uini Atonio (France) - 146kg

Atonio is an absolute monster in the French front row, weighing in at 146kg (23st) and standing at an astonishing 6ft 5in. Having made his Les Bleus debut back in 2014, the La Rochelle man has gone on to win 54 caps for his country, forming an integral part of Fabien Galthie's side.

1. Ben Tameifuna (Tonga) - 151kg

The undisputed heavyweight champion of this World Cup, the giant Tongan tighthead weighs in at a staggering 151kg (23st 11lb). Auckland-born Tameifuna - also known as 'Big Ben' - currently plies his trade with Bordeaux, but was stood down by his former club, Racing 92 when he returned from the last World Cup in Japan weighing 160kg (25st 3lbs), something he put down to a love of his mum's cooking.