IN 1995, 17-year-old Joseph Rodan Jr, known to many as JJ, became the youngest male athlete to win a gold medal in athletics in the Pacific Games.
JJ was Fiji’s most successful multi discipline athlete as he repeated his gold medal performance in 1999 and in 2003.
His attitude and dedication towards sports has helped him carve a career path as well. He is the sales and distribution manager at Asaleo Care (Fiji) Limited.
JJ also harbours the dream to take athletics to greater heights being one of the few people who helped turn around Athletics Fiji. His connection with sports remain as he is the chief development officer for Athletics Fiji as well.
Describe yourself …
Simple, hardworking and down to earth person
Q. What inspires you to be the person that you are?
A. Desire to do my best and be the best in what I do, and be a role model and example to my kids, nephews and nieces.
Q. What would you describe as your passion in life and how are you going about realising it?
A. Striving to succeed in what I do to ensure I position myself well in life to support and enjoy life with my wife and kids, making the most of every day I have with them. My family is my passion, everything I aligns back to them and giving them the best.
Q. What would you consider to be most memorable in your career?
A. Winning my first Pacific Games gold medal in decathlon at the 1995 South Pacific Games, and becoming the youngest male gold medallist in Athletics as a 17-year-old in the Pacific Games history. That was the beginning that opened up all the opportunities in my life that has led to sporting and professional success.
* I am obsessed … succeeding in what I set out to do, and winning.
* I can’t live without … my wife and five kids
* I am proud of … the work we have done with Athletics Fiji in the past 24 months from a federation that was on the verge of being thrown out by the international body IAAF, to one that’s the best in the Pacific today.
* Wish I could change … Nothing, I love everything about my life and have no regrets with choices and outcomes in my life.
* Really need to … start a structured approach to training and getting fit again more than just on a casual ad hoc way.
* Can’t handle it … Can’t handle or being around negative people that try to pull us down to the bottom of the pit — pit dwellers as they are known in leadership context.
* I look back … and thank the Lord for meeting my wife who has blessed me with five lovely livewire kids and our lucky number six on the way. I look back and thank God for my big family that’s full of excitement, activity and fun.
* I relax by … watching athletics, sports, going out with my family for a meal and movies, or just relaxing at home telling stories with my wife, parents, and family.
* I am excited about … the hosting of the Melanesian Athletics Championships that will see more than 550 athletes and 12 countries participating and making it a success.
* I have always wanted … Athletics in Fiji to have and run its own track and field stadium where we will have access full time to our facilities that will enable us to fully and effectively develop our athletes to be the best in Oceania and capable of mixing it with the best in the world.
* Biggest weakness … My wife and mother’s cooking…too good.
* Fridge usually contains … tomatoe sauce, sweet chilli sauce and mayonnaise that’s a must with most meals, and fruits and vegetables.
* List of favourite things … too many to name
* Opinion on the state of the world … technology is taking over and the personal connections between people are being lost. Value of life in my view will become lost as people will probably spend more time in posting and reading about others’ life as opposed to living and enjoying life and the wonders of this world.
* Mother always told me … “I told you so” when I didn’t take her advice on something and didn’t get the desired results … lol
* My attitude to exercise … needs improving, I need to commit myself to make this a priority in my life to improve on my physical and health state.
* My relationship with my body … love hate relationship, that I love the idea of being fit and in shape but hate and struggle to drag myself to the tracks and run the laps, drills and stretches needed to get into shape.
