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Mauritius, officially the Republic of Mauritius, is an island nation in the Indian Ocean, about 2,000 kilometres off the southeastern coast of East Africa, east of Madagascar. It includes the main island, as well as Rodrigues, Agaléga, and St. Brandon. The islands of Mauritius and Rodrigues, along with nearby Réunion, are part of the Mascarene Islands. The main island of Mauritius, where the population is concentrated, hosts the capital and largest city, Port Louis. The country spans 2,040 square kilometres (790 sq mi) and has an exclusive economic zone covering 2,300,000 square kilometres.
Francis Edward Cotton is a former rugby union prop forward who played for England and the British Lions. His clubs included Coventry R.F.C. and Sale. After retiring, he remained in rugby administration and founded a clothing company. In 2007, Cotton returned to his former club Sale as a member of the club's board.
The France national rugby league team represents France in international rugby league matches. They are referred to as les Chanticleers or less commonly as les Tricolores. The team is run under the auspices of the Fédération Française de Rugby à XIII.
The Zimbabwe national rugby union team, nicknamed the Sables, represents the Zimbabwe Rugby Union in international competition. While sides representing the colony of Rhodesia have played as early as 1910, the modern day Zimbabwe rugby team did not play its first test until 1981, against Kenya. Zimbabwe has competed in two World Cups, in 1987 and 1991, in place of South Africa, who were sanctioned by the IRB at the time due to apartheid. Zimbabwe is categorized as Tier 3 Development One, which prioritizes Zimbabwe over other nations due to historical success as well as popularity of rugby in the nation.
The Mauritius Football Association (MFA) is the governing body of football in Mauritius. It was founded in 1952, affiliated to FIFA in 1964 and to CAF in 1965. The association was formerly known as the Mauritius Sports Association but renamed to Mauritius Football Association in 1984 through the introduction of a Sports Act by the government. The founding members of the association were FC Dodo, Faucon Flacq SC, CSC, Hounds, Royal College of Curepipe, and Saint Joseph College, all of which were based out of Curepipe and, with the exception of Flacq SC, have since ceased to exist. The Mauritius Football Association organizes the national football league and the national team.
Rugby union in Fiji is a popular team sport and is considered to be the national sport of the country. The sport was introduced to Fiji in the 1880s. Fiji is defined as a tier two rugby nation by World Rugby. The national team has competed at the Rugby World Cup and made it as far as the quarter-finals. Their sevens team is also noted for their success, winning multiple Olympic gold medals, World Rugby Sevens Series and Rugby World Cup Sevens.
Mauritians are nationals or natives of the Republic of Mauritius and their descendants. Mauritius is a melting pot of multi-ethnic, multi-cultural and multi- religious group of people. Mauritian is made up of a blended groups of people come mainly from ;South Asian, African(Mozambique, Madagascar and Zanzibar), European, and Chinese descent, as well as those of a mixed background from any combination of the aforementioned ethnic groups. Creol Mauritian is the blending of the different cultures, this is why it is complex to define creol-Mauritian.
Franco-Mauritians form an ethnic group of white people in Mauritius who trace their ethnic ancestry to France and ethnic French people. Franco-Mauritians make up approximately 2% of the country's population. Other than documented European ancestry, it is their skin colour which distinguishes Franco-Mauritians from the rest of ethnic groups in Mauritius, where they are also known as blancs or blanches.
Rugby union in Kenya is a popular sport, in particular due to the success of the Kenya national rugby sevens team in the rugby sevens format, and tournaments such as the Safari Sevens, which has been growing yearly, and now includes numerous international teams.
Rugby union in Japan is a moderately popular sport. Japan has the fourth largest population of rugby union players in the world and the sport has been played there for over a century. There are 125,000 Japanese rugby players, 3,631 official rugby clubs, and the Japan national team is ranked 12th in the world.
The Mauritius national rugby union team represents Mauritius in international rugby union. Mauritius is a member of World Rugby, but the national team is ranked as third tier, and Mauritius have yet to compete in either the Africa Cup or Rugby World Cup.
Rugby union in Israel was brought to the country by British soldiers during the British Mandate for Palestine. Rugby Israel was founded as the Israel Rugby Union in 1975, and joined the IRB in 1988. For political reasons it is also part of FIRA-AER, the European rugby body, rather than the Asian Rugby Football Union.
Santé engagé is a genre of Mauritian music which consists of singing and rapping protest songs. It is a way to protest against political/social oppression and repression through music. The genre mixes traditional Mauritian sega with Indian, Chinese and Western influences.
Rugby union in Malawi, and its predecessor state, Nyasaland, is a minor sport, albeit one with a long history.
Rugby union in Poland is a moderately popular sport and currently, the Polish men`s national team are ranked 30th in the world as of 20th November 2022. The Poland women's rugby sevens team won the silver medal at the 2023 European Games behind Great Britain, progressing to the final 2024 Summer Olympic qualification tournament.
Rugby union in Zambia is a minor but growing sport. The Zambia national rugby union team is currently ranked 67th by World Rugby. The Zambia Rugby Football Union has 9880 registered players and three formally organised clubs.
Rugby union in Seychelles is a minor but growing sport.
Rugby union in the Soviet Union was a moderately popular sport. It was most popular in the Georgian SSR; parts of the Russian SFSR such as Moscow and certain regions in Siberia like Krasnoyarsk; and Alma-Ata, the capital of the Kazakh SSR. Rugby enjoyed a more limited popularity in the Ukrainian SSR, Minsk in the Byelorussian SSR and parts of the RSFSR such as Leningrad and areas in Southern Russia, including Krasnodar. Rugby gained a significant following due to the vast size of the Soviet Union, but was never a major sport; despite many attempts to develop the sport, which Soviet citizens came to nickname the "leather melon" due to the shape of the ball. Still, an early championship in 1960 gives an idea of the sheer scale of Soviet rugby: one hundred teams from over thirty cities took part.
Football is the most popular sport in Mauritius. The national governing body is the Mauritius Football Association. Internationally, Mauritius is represented by Club M in senior competitions, and by the U-17 and U-20 teams in youth competitions. The top domestic football league in Mauritius is the Mauritian League, and the top knockout tournament is the Mauritian Cup.
The cuisine of Mauritius is greatly influenced by the tropical location of the island as well as the cultural diversity which characterizes the country. Mauritian cuisine is a blend of African, Chinese, European and Indian influences in the history of Mauritius. Most of the dishes and culinary traditions are inspired by French culture, former African slaves, Indian workers and Chinese migrants that arrived in the country during the 19th century. Over the years, communities found in Mauritius have adapted and mixed each other's cuisine to their liking, resulting in the development of Mauritian cuisine. While some popular dishes and desserts are consumed by Mauritians of all ethnic groups or communities, there are also forms of cuisines which remain distinctly ethnic and are unique to a specific ethnic community due to their ancestral cultural and historical connections. Local food which varies depending on ethnic communities therefore reflects the strong traditional, cultural, and historical influences of each community. French cuisine is very popular in Mauritius. Sino-Mauritian cuisine is one of the most prevalent in the restaurants throughout the island.The cuisine of Mauritius is greatly influenced by the tropical location of the island as well as the cultural diversity which characterizes the country. Mauritian cuisine is a blend of African, Chinese, European and Indian influences in the history of Mauritius. Most of the dishes and culinary traditions are inspired by French culture, former African slaves, Indian workers and Chinese migrants that arrived in the country during the 19th century. Over the years, communities found in Mauritius have adapted and mixed each other's cuisine to their liking, resulting in the development of Mauritian cuisine. While some popular dishes and desserts are consumed by Mauritians of all ethnic groups or communities, there are also forms of cuisines which remain distinctly ethnic and are unique to a specific ethnic community due to their ancestral cultural and historical connections. Local food which varies depending on ethnic communities therefore reflects the strong traditional, cultural, and historical influences of each community. French cuisine is very popular in Mauritius. Sino-Mauritian cuisine is one of the most prevalent in the restaurants throughout the island.
References
- ↑ Cotton, p47
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 "RUM - Rugby Union Mauritius". Archived from the original on 2008-12-06. Retrieved 2009-06-23.
- ↑ Still standing: the maintenance of a white elite in Mauritius IIAS NL 45 Archived 22 November 2009 at the Wayback Machine
- Cotton, Fran (Ed.) (1984) The Book of Rugby Disasters & Bizarre Records. Compiled by Chris Rhys. London. Century Publishing. ISBN 0-7126-0911-3
