The memories of hardship at the village of Ravitaki on Kadavu fuelled Terio Tamani Veilawa with the motivation he needed when things got tough at training.
Veilawa is one of the final 15 players chosen by head coach Osea Kolinisau to carry the Fiji 7s team’s golden legacy at the 2024 Paris Olympic Games.
This will be the first time for the nippy playmaker to play at the pinnacle stage of sports.
It has been a rugby-filled season for the 30-year-old who was involved with Suva Rugby Union in the Skipper Cup competition when not on national duties.
Between all of this, the policeman prayed silently for a chance to make it to the big stage.
“I’d like to thank God for his plans, it’s been a long journey. I’ve missed selection in the past during the 2020 Olympics and the Rugby World Cup but I’m grateful to be one of the few chosen,” he shared.
“I was brought up in my village, Ravitaki on Kadavu, and went through so many hardships the memories of those days stayed with me and it gives me motivation when things get tough. I was brought up there, was farming before I came to Suva looking for greener pastures.”
Veilawa made his Fiji 7s debut during the Singapore 7s in 2018.
