Date of birth | 9 December 1972 | ||||||||||||||||
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Height | 1.88 m (6 ft 2 in) | ||||||||||||||||
Weight | 89 kg (196 lb; 14.0 st) | ||||||||||||||||
Rugby union career | |||||||||||||||||
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Saimoni Rokini (born 9 December 1972) is a Fijian rugby union footballer. He plays as a centre. His nickname is Rocky.
He is 1.88m tall and weighs 89 kg. He scored a try on his debut in the Epson Cup clash against Japan in May 2000 after some fine early season form with Suva had caught former coach Greg Smith's attention.
He has played two seasons of sevens with the national team, winning in Hong Kong in 1998 and 1999. In August 2000, he played for the Penguins when they won the Middlesex Charity 7s at Twickenham. He also provided ideal backline cover in 2001 following injuries to Marika Vunibaka, Vilimoni Delasau and Seremaia Bai, eventually securing a regular run-on spot at centre in the Pacific Rim finals in Japan where he came into his own in some physically demanding matches. He was recalled into the Fiji sevens team to Hong Kong in 2004 where he skippered the team. He is also a cousin of Fiji sevens coach, Waisale Serevi.
The Hong Kong Sevens is a rugby sevens tournament held annually in Hong Kong on a weekend in late March or early April. Considered the premier tournament on the World Rugby Sevens Series competition, the Hong Kong Sevens is currently the seventh tournament on the World Series calendar. The tournament spans three days, beginning on a Friday and concluding on Sunday. The tournament is organised each year by the Hong Kong Rugby Union (HKRU). Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the tournament was cancelled in 2020 and 2021 respectively. The latest Hong Kong Rugby Sevens is being held on Friday 5 April, Saturday 6 April, Sunday 7 April 2024.
Waisale Tikoisolomoni Serevi is a Fijian former rugby union football player and coach, and is a member of the World Rugby Hall of Fame. Serevi is renowned for his achievements in rugby sevens, while also enjoying a long career in fifteen-a-side rugby at both club and national team levels. Nicknamed "The Wizard" by commentators, he is widely considered to be the greatest rugby sevens player in the history of the game. A biography of Serevi titled Waisale Serevi: King of Sevens by Nick Darvenzi was published in 2018.
The Japan national rugby league team, nicknamed the Samurais, represents Japan in rugby league football. Japan have played some international competition since 1994. The Japanese National Cup, the JRL domestic club competition, was founded in 1998. In 2021 the season was restarted after a break for COVID with five teams in two divisions, three clubs in East Japan, the Abiko Ducks, Mitaka Spartans and South Ikebukuro Rabbitohs; and two clubs in West Japan, the Kamisenryu Sea Turtles and The Kansai Kaminari.
Ratu Seru Rabeni was a Fijian rugby union player. He played as a centre or wing. At both club and international level, his physicality and heavy tackles earned him the nickname "Rambo".
The Fiji national rugby sevens team has competed in the World Rugby Sevens Series, Rugby World Cup Sevens and the Olympics. Fiji won the gold medal in the inaugural rugby sevens at the Summer Olympics in 2016 in Brazil, the country's first Olympic medal in any event, and repeated as Olympic champions in the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo, defeating New Zealand. Fiji would fall short from winning gold for a third straight time in 2024 after a defeat in the final to hosts France. Overall, Fiji are the only national rugby sevens team in the world to have won the Sevens Treble, the three major achievements in Sevens. They have won multiple World Rugby Sevens Series and Rugby World Cup Sevens.
The Samoa national rugby sevens team, referred to as Samoa Sevens or Manu Samoa 7s, competes in the annual World Rugby Sevens Series. Representing the polynesian country of Samoa, with a population of about 202,000, the team competes against some of the wealthiest countries in the world. The Samoa sevens team is overseen by the Samoa Rugby Football Union, which oversees all of rugby union in Samoa.
The Japan national rugby sevens team participates in competitions such as the World Rugby Sevens Series and the Rugby World Cup Sevens.
The United States national rugby sevens team competes in international rugby sevens competitions. The national sevens team is organized by USA Rugby, and the team has been led by Head Coach Mike Friday since 2014.
Rugby union in China is a growing sport; however, it is still not overly popular. China became affiliated to the International Rugby Board in 1997 and as of 1 July 2019, its women's XV side was ranked 24th and its men's XV side 80th in the world. Neither the women's team nor the men's team has yet qualified for a Women's Rugby World Cup or a men's Rugby World Cup. However, China has hopes of one day hosting the men's event, and World Rugby has indicated it supports taking the event there.
Rugby union in Hong Kong is long established, partly as a result of its being a British colony. Rugby union is one of the most popular sports in Hong Kong. In contrast to the People's Republic of China, it has had a continuous existence dating back over a hundred years, and is most notable for the Hong Kong Sevens tournament, the best known of the rugby sevens tournaments. The top domestic club competition is the HKRFU Premiership.
The Papua New Guinea national rugby sevens team competes in the Pacific Games, Commonwealth Games, Challenger Series and the Oceania Sevens. They finished third in 2009 and fourth in 2010, 2015, 2016 and 2023 in the Oceania Sevens. They missed out on a maiden Olympic spot after being defeated by Samoa 24-0 in the 2023 Oceania 7s Olympic Playoff.
Iliesa Samusamuvodre Tanivula is a former New Zealand sevens player and the current coach of the Fiji sevens team. Tanivula could play most positions in the backline. He mainly played at centre, wing or fullback.
Setareki "Seta" Tawake Naivaluwaqa is a retired Fijian rugby union player, who was capped for Fiji on 31 occasions. He played as Openside flanker or Number 8. He played in two Rugby World Cups. He was also a soldier
Martin Iosefo is an American rugby union player who currently plays for the Seattle Seawolves in Major League Rugby (MLR). He previously played several seasons with the United States national rugby sevens team.
Pauliasi Tabulutu is a Fijian former dual-code international rugby footballer. He played as scrum-half.
Savenaca Aria was a Fijian rugby union footballer and later a coach. He played as a centre.
Eroni Sau, nicknamed "The Sledgehammer", is a Fijian rugby union player currently playing for the Fijian Drua in Super Rugby
The 2019 Hong Kong Sevens was a rugby sevens tournament that took place at the Hong Kong Stadium between the 5–7 April 2019. It was the 44th edition of the Hong Kong Sevens, and the seventh tournament of the 2018–19 World Rugby Sevens Series. Sixteen teams competed in the main tournament, while a further twelve competed in a qualifier tournament with the winner getting core team status for the 2019–20 World Rugby Sevens Series.
Angelo Davids is a South African rugby sevens player for the South Africa national rugby sevens team, where his regular position is wing and back. He also plays for the DHL Stormers in super rugby and the Western Province in the currie cup.
George Dreadon Simpkin was a New Zealand rugby union coach, known for working with the national teams of Fiji, Hong Kong and Sri Lanka. He made a great contribution to the development of rugby union and rugby sevens in those countries.