By Alipate Pareti
When you think of Rugby 7s, the ascent of Fiji’s men’s team to the summit of 7s heaven and their winning of almost every accolade of the fast-paced and ever-growing sport is usually the first thing that come to mind. However, that has changed with the stirring performance of the Fiji women’s side, dubbed the Fijiana, who claimed bronze in Tokyo.
The Fijiana had given notice of their vastly improved form in the Oceania tournament in Townsville, Australia, in the leadup to the Olympic Games.
There they shocked the small crowd in attendance when they beat the Australian team in emphatic fashion. Australia were the defending Olympic champions, so beating them was a massive boost as they headed over to Tokyo.
Once in Japan, the Fijiana came through the pools to again meet Australia in a nail-biting quarter final, eventually winning 14-12.
The women then met New Zealand in the semi-final, taking the game right to the wire. Captain Rusila Nagasau—one of the pioneers of women’s rugby in Fiji—led from the front, making crucial tackles in defence. At full time the teams were tied at 17-all, forcing play into extra time. The game ended when the Black Ferns scored, at 22 points to 17.
The Fijiana comfortably defeated Great Britain in the bronze medal match 21 – 12 to secure their place on the podium. The players were all impressive with half-back Reapi Uluinasau instrumental in their victories. She will be a star to watch in the near future.
Captain Nagasau was elated: “We came here for a mission and that was to win the gold medal, but it didn’t go the way we wanted. However, we are more than happy with a bronze. That is an achievement for us as a team.”
Perseverance and pride
As for the men’s team, what can we say? They were just phenomenal as they tore through their opponents led by now two-time gold medallist, captain Jerry Tuwai, before defeating old rivals New Zealand 27-12 in the final match.
New finds, Juita Wainiqolo and Sireli Maqala dictated the game play and while superstar Semi Radradra suffered a knee injury later in the tournament, he was able to deliver when the team needed him.
The road to glory was to not easy for our Pacific warriors and details of the hardships and challenges they faced have since surfaced.
As COVID-19 has affected movement, gatherings and every aspect of life within Fiji since April, the team spent more than five months in quarantine in preparations for the Tokyo Games, isolated from their families and loved ones.
Jerry Tuwai stated: “It has been a long preparation and I give credit to our coach and management for helping us through. With whatever the management gave us, the players stuck through it, and I think all the sacrifices have paid off. It has been a bumpy ride, a lot of tears and pain, lots of obstacles for us, to leave our family and stuck together as a team and I am really thankful to my brothers for sticking together as a team.”
The Fijiana had to deal not only with COVID restrictions and lockdowns, but also issues of discrimination, and the attitude “rugby is not meant for women”.
Following their scintillating rugby at the Olympics, messages of support, appreciation and love for the team have flooded mainstream platforms and social media. People of all ages, ethnicity, gender and social backgrounds have taken their time to show their appreciation for both teams and how proud they are of them.
An important lesson we can learn from their stories is the attitude of not giving up. However difficult the circumstances and situations we face in our lives may be, we should persevere. Rugby teaches us the Fijian moral value of “dau vosota vakadede” – which basically means in English, to persevere (and resilience, endurance and patience).
For the players and many of their supporters, the victories and these stories of perseverance reveal the greatness of God in ourselves; all we have to do is believe and trust in Him, and He will provide.
The Fiji government showed its support by rewarding the players with cash incentives; F$33,000 for the gold medallists and F$11,000 for the bronze medallists, as the country’s token of appreciation to their Olympic heroes. Fiji Prime Minister Frank Bainimarama shared his admiration for the women’s achievements, saying, “With the eyes of the young women of Fiji upon these heroes –– no doubt we’ll soon see many thousands more. The best from this team is yet to come. Congratulations Girls!”
But we could ask ourselves, where to from now? I believe one way we could help assist the teams is by giving them more support. Let’s get behind our Rugby 7s warriors, especially the women’s team, as they build from the Olympic success. Let’s get our young girls involved in rugby.
National Federation Party MP Lenora Qereqeretabua has since told parliament that in order for women to consistently succeed at this elite level of sports, there must be respect for their efforts and an equal playing field: “There must be a development pathway, there must be an adequate, equal and fair distribution of financial support by governing bodies for players, the teams, clubs and officials from government and from sponsors.”
Let’s do away with the primitive idea that rugby is only for men. As we have witnessed, the Fijiana are more than capable of achieving rugby greatness and their Pacific sisters in other rugby-crazy island nations could follow suit.
Together we can do it. The grand achievements in Tokyo were not only victories for Fiji. As Papua New Guinea Olympic Committee General Secretary, Auvita Rapilla said, “It’s been great that we could celebrate with Fiji with medals…We don’t see it as just for Fiji. It’s for us as well, the Pacific. And it’s fantastic.”
