“I UNDERSTAND that for me today (Friday), this is not just a vote, but a profound responsibility and calling that I accept with immense humility and gratitude.”
With these words, Koli Sewabu accepted the role of chief executive officer of the Fiji Rugby Union on Friday, December 19.
Sewabu now permanently holds the highest position in the nation’s rugby regulatory body, after holding it in an acting capacity, following the resignation of former CEO Rovereto Nayacalevu in May.
Leading up to this role, Sewabu has gone through a rugby pathway that has seen him evolve from a young rugby player in Naitasiri to becoming one of Fiji rugby’s prolific figures.
Humble beginnings in local rugby
Sewabu’s journey towards becoming the new chief executive officer of the FRU started long ago, when he was a young boy growing up in Navuso, Naitasiri.
Speaking to Times Sport in June this year for a RAKA FILE feature which chronicled the experiences of former Flying Fijians in the lead-up to the July Tests, Sewabu detailed a rugby career both on and off the field that has been illustrious.
It has seen him go from humble beginnings at Navuso District School to being a part of the Flying Fijians at a time when the national team’s formidable qualities had solidified into prominence and now, CEO of the FRU.
He continued his rugby journey at secondary school level at Ratu Sukuna Memorial School, featuring in its under-16 and 17 rugby teams.
At this time, he also joined the Navuso Rugby Club.
Club rugby broadened his horizons, and he also joined the Rewa Colts, a team that held a solidified mark on ruggers in Tailevu and Naitasiri before their respective provincial unions were formed and bloomed to be the powerhouses they are today.
Meanwhile, he switched from donning the RSMS colours to strutting his stuff with Ratu Kadavulevu School, playing a key part in helping the team make it to the final of the Deans competition in 1994.
After secondary school, Sewabu’s sights were still set firm on expanding his rugby career and led to him joining the Tailevu rugby development side when the union was first established in 1996.
From 1995 to 1996, he also was part of the Castaway Island Rugby Club in Malolo and joined Malolo’s B-Division team in 1997.
Sewabu heads abroad
That year, Sewabu moved abroad to New Zealand and so began a 13-year stint of playing professional rugby that saw him do so in New Zealand, France, England and Japan.
In New Zealand, he played for the Ponsonby Rugby Club’s 7s team in Auckland in 1997 and the North Shore Rugby Club from 1997 to 1998.
Becoming a Flying Fijian
In November 1998, Sewabu joined the Flying Fijians on their tour of the United Kingdom, where they faced teams in England and Scotland.
Sewabu recalled how it felt to don the white national jumper, describing the emotions and the significance that accompanied the milestone achievement.
“A powerful and emotional experience, evoking a strong sense of national pride and connection to the ‘Flying Fijians’,” Sewabu recalled.
“The journey and years of toil, blood, sweat and tears flashed before my eyes when the national anthem was sung.”
The essence of the moment was not lost on him as he reflected on what it meant not just for him but for everyone that played a part in his rugby journey until that point.
“My family, my spheres of influence flashed before my eyes in an instance, how much they meant to me and how they have sacrificed to get me to where I was that day- the connection to my heritage, my vanua, my chiefs.”
“I thought of the days of sacrifice and commitment- it was all worth it.”
He played his first home game against the Waikato Chiefs in 1998 and earned his first cap in an Epson Cup match against Canada.
And after his stint with the Flying Fijians, it did not stop there as it continued further, as he also played for the Fiji Warriors in 1998 and culminated in his selection to represent Fiji at the 1999 and 2003 Rugby World Cups.
Onward to Europe, Japan and back to NZ
At the turn of the millennium in 2000, Sewabu moved to France, joining the Union Bordeaux Bègles in the French Top 14 competition.
A year later, he featured for Gloucester in England’s Premiership Rugby competition, and helped the team win the competition in 2002.
After a dedicated stint in Europe, he headed east to Japan, playing for the Yamaha Jubilo (now known as the Shizuoka Blue Revs) from 2003 to 2006.
The Blue Revs is also the club where Olympic gold medalist and Flying Fijian winger and centre Semi Radradra now plies his trade for.
He returned to New Zealand to play for Manawatu in the National Provincial Championship from 2006 to 2010.
Moving off the field
In 2011, still in New Zealand, Sewabu took on a new role as player and coach of Feilding Yellows, before coaching the Kia Toa Rugby Football Club to winning the Hankin Shields in 2012.
The Hankin Shield is awarded to the winner of the senior one men’s club competition organised by the Manawatu Rugby Union in New Zealand.
He helped bring home the shield once more in 2015, when he coached the Massey University team.
Service in the homeland once more
In 2018, Naitasiri lifted the Farebrother trophy after they beat Tailevu 27-13 and reclaimed a trophy they lost in 2008.
And the man behind that reclamation was Sewabu himself and he told The Fiji Times then he was a very happy man as he saw the fruits of their unity being reaped.
“This is a win for our province,” Sewabu said at the time.
“We did not start well in the season because of some differences, but we regrouped, put our differences aside and worked together. Today (yesterday) we reaped the fruit of our working together. As a coach, I am very, very happy.”
He also coached the Fiji under-20 side that year to the World Rugby U20 Trophy competition, where Fiji won 58-8 over Samoa to become its new champion.
After that, he took an active role within the Fiji Rugby Union, becoming its national development manager from 2019 to 2022.
He then joined Rugby Australia and Oceania Rugby to be its international partnerships officer from 2022 to 2024.
In 2023, he was a performance coach for the Fijiana XV and also became an Australian level four performance coach that year.
Last November, he was made a World Rugby master trainer and joined the Fiji Rakavi Football Union Limited as its rugby director.
He then became acting CEO of the FRU in May this year, before being appointed to it recently.
Sewabu’s ‘whys’
When he was asked by Times Sport in June of what helped him remain committed as a player, he listed five factors that could also be applied to his approach as both a player and sporting administrator.
They were his goals in a professional and family-oriented capacity, his discipline and hard work in ensuring he was “doing the little things right”, his passion to succeed and keep chasing the best version of himself and his faith in God.
“I treat every goal that I achieved as highlights and success along the way. It’s hard to pinpoint this into one as for me, I always set the next goal when one is achieved, and I always try to chase the best version myself,” he said.
Present day: gratitude and humility
In taking up the role of chief executive officer, Sewabu said being entrusted with the role meant the FRU board demonstrated their belief and trust in him as a leader.
“There’s a lot of massive work to be done as we’ve been discussing lately, and I’m grateful that I have a board that will guide me along the way to ensure that we achieve what is needed for the betterment of rugby in Fiji,” he mentioned.
A grateful Sewabu thanked his wife and children, acknowledging them as his backbone whose support kept him going and accountable.
“It is now my duty to serve this office with the utmost respect and integrity, so those who follow have a much better platform to showcase their gifts, their skills and their talents.
“For me, Fiji rugby carries the hope of a nation. Whether it’s on the field, every tackle, every pass, whether it’s off the field, every field, every triumphant song; it echoes the spirit of our people.
“That is why we must lead with clear purpose, united vision and shared goals – so we do not merely manage a sport, we steward a national symbol.”
Meanwhile, Sewabu had resigned from his previous role on the Fiji Rakavi Football Union board as rugby director before being made acting CEO, and the board will follow due process to fill the vacancy.
