I am reminded of Dallin H. Oaks beautiful quote, “A good marriage does not require a perfect man or a perfect woman. It only requires a man and a woman committed to strive together toward perfection,” as I pen this article on our rising 7s star Jiuta Wainiqolo’s journey to his much-anticipated marriage.
On Tuesday in the Anaconda Town, Jiuta, who was part of the Tokyo Olympic Games gold medal winning outfit, scored the try of his life, as he tied the knot to his sweetheart Fiona Weleilakeba.
Jiuta and Fiona will be flying out to France later this month, and the duo is excited about their future in a country which is known to be home to many of our Fijian flyers.
Fiona recalled meeting Jiuta on Instagram last year, and the first two words which were uttered by Jiuta were ‘Bula vinaka!’
She said that she did not have any idea who Jiuta was. Jiuta was then part of the national 7s team camp at St Johns, and their meet-up transpired during the first round of the 2020 Skipper Cup and Farebrother-Sullivan Trophy Challenge between Suva and Nadroga at Lawaqa Park which Nadroga successfully won.
Jiuta and Fiona continued socialising on Instagram, and after one week of chatting, the duo decided to meet each other.
They met at the Gloria Coffee Shop, and Jiuta’s jovial and friendly nature captured Fiona’s attention.
Jiuta recalled seeing Fiona on Instragram as a beautiful lady with an athletic built, and this is when he started falling for her.
Thus, their friendship was blooming into a special and revered relationship.
Fiona attended International Secondary School and then her parents, Sitiveni Weleilakeba and Kelera Uluiviti, migrated to New Zealand.
Fiona played netball during her secondary school days, and is a rower.
She has an elder brother and a younger sister. Her dad is based in Papua New Guinea, while her mother is in NZ.
Sadly, her parents could not make it to her wedding.
There is nothing more lovely in life than the union of two people whose love for one another has grown through the years, from the small acorn of passion, into a great rooted tree.
Hence, Jiuta and Fiona made up their minds to fall in love with each other eternally, and that their love must end into a happy, beautiful wedding.
Fiona shared over the phone that they had spent a considerable amount of time planning for their wedding, and she was relieved that it was over.
She said that she was emotional, as her parents could not be part of her wedding, but they were beside her, spiritually and mentally.
Fiona also shared that she missed Jiuta a lot when he was with the national 7s team in camp, preparing for the Oceania 7s and Olympic Games.
She added that she missed Jiuta so much that she had to get Sky Pacific connected at home so she could see him play in Townsville.
She said that she was impressed with Jiuta’s performance, especially his speed, power and ability to tackle big players like Caleb Clarke (NZ), and she was proud and excited seeing Jiuta make a mark on his debut tournament, and she had to agree with her cousins that Jiuta had exceptional talents.
She said that she was lucky that he was part of her. S
he didn’t realise how good Jiuta was, and made this remark to him smiling, “I didn’t know you were this good.”
Fiona recalled praying for Jiuta and his selection into the 13-member squad to Tokyo, and she described breaking down into tears when Jiuta made the cut to the 2016 Rio Olympic Games gold medal defence.
She said that two quotes, ‘Love is the master key that opens the gates of happiness’ and ‘Being deeply loved by someone gives you strength, while loving someone deeply gives you courage,’ gave her the strength to bear her love’s departure to Tokyo.
Jiuta said that while he was in Japan, he missed Fiona and his family a lot, and that he badly wanted to win the gold medal to gift them. Fiona relayed how she jumped with delight when Jiuta scored Fiji’s first try against Japan, and she had a feeling that he was going to shine.
According to her, Jiuta’s try against the All Blacks in the final of the Tokyo Olympic Games was her best moment. She said that she gave a big kaila when Jiuta belted Team Great Britain’s experienced warrior Dan Norton with a tackle that sent him to the floor.
She said that Jiuta had an amazing Olympic Games tournament, and she felt super proud, excited, thrilled and emotional seeing her man standing tall on the gold medal podium.
She was content that Jiuta’s sacrifice, hard work and dedication had been rewarded. I asked Fiona about the qualities in Jiuta that attracted her and her reply was that he was jovial, kind, good-hearted, and his good soul and smile attracted her.
She added that his moustache was eye-catching,and it made him macho, look young andhandsome.
Jiuta, on the other hand, shared that he was overwhelmed and grateful that Fiona had accepted him, although her standard was relatively higher than his.
He said that he told Fiona that if Fiona’s dad did not accept him, she could look for someone else, but Fiona replied that their relationship was not about money, but all about love, and that she loved him dearly.
“There is no greater happiness for a man than approaching a door at the end of a day knowing someone on the other side of that door is waiting for the sound of his footsteps,” (Ronald Reagan)- this is how Fiona felt seeing Jiuta by her side on their wedding day.
Jiuta and Fiona were married happily, and are currently in Suva, before they fl y out to France where Jiuta will join his club Toulon. Jiuta was excited, as he was on the verge of starting a new journey with Fiona, who had been her anchor – she supported, motivated and encouraged him to achieve great things in life.
The duo thanked their families and friends for the everlasting support and prayers. I conclude with this quote by F. Burton Howard, “If you want something to last forever, you treat it differently. You shield it and protect it. You never abuse it. You don’t expose it to the elements.
“You don’t make it common or ordinary. If it becomes tarnished, you lovingly polish it until it gleams like new. It becomes special because you made it so, and it grows more beautiful and precious as time goes by.”
My best wishes to Jiuta and Fiona on the journey!
I’m sure the next chapter will be equally exciting!
- RAJNESH LINGAM is a regular contributor to this newspaper and the views expressed in this article are his and not of The Fiji Times.
