7' Life Lessons from the Game of Rugby by Jiuta Wainiqolo

Wednesday 11th August, 2021

Bula…my name is Jiuta Wainiqolo. Member of the Tokyo 2020 Olympics- Gold Medal winning Fiji 7' Rugby team.

I hail from Vuda vasu Ra , At the outset, I would like to tell you something very frankly. I’m not a perfect person. I do make mistakes but I try my best to learn from them.

Just like you, I am a human being. None of us are perfect. So listen to me with a grain of salt. Keep what you want, and throw away what you don’t. That being said, I’ve been paying attention to the topic of youth sports for many years.

I am constantly trying to learn from myself, my family, and my coaches. And today, I’m sharing what I’ve learned so far from the game of Rugby…

Yes…Seven lessons from the Rugby field, I would like to share with our Youths of Fiji and around the world to celebrate International Youth day 2021.

To help you achieve your goals as I have:

Let’s face it. The world is an extremely competitive place. Regardless of what you decide to do with your life, you will need to know how to compete to get anywhere & prepare yourself accordingly. True, there are other great ways to learn this, but Rugby or any youth sport can be a very fulfilling way to do it.

Whether you are an athlete or not into sports at all, you’re going to need to prepare and be dedicated to being successful. To get anywhere in life, whether it be school, business, or organizational, you’re going to need to know the importance of preparation and the magic of dedication. Hard work pays off. It did for me, it will do for you.

I know, many say and teach that winning isn’t important. It is politically correct in today’s world to pass it off as not important and to pitch the idea that everyone wins. However, in life, that’s simply not true. And it is important to accept that the desire to win is okay. It should be learned and felt by our youths because they can accomplish many things down the road using that desire.

“It ain’t about how hard you hit, it’s about how hard you can get hit.” There are more failures in life than there are successes. A failure should be a mere learning experience and fuel for the fire of wanting success. It is great for you to learn how to lose at a young age, so when you win later you do not get carried away.

Gratitude is one of the most important and most powerful human qualities for a young person to have. You should be thankful for what you have & feel great about it rather than crying over things you don’t have. ‘thank yourself & others’ and mean it. Remain connected to your friends & families even when you are at the peak.

One of the only things you can control in life is your attitude. You have complete control over that. And no one, I mean no one wants to be around someone with a horrible attitude. The playing field is a great place to teach you about an attitude that will empower you through the rest of their life. I encourage everyone to keep the discipline, time to sleep, time to train, time to have fun must be followed. Stay away from in disciplinary attitude.

Stay focused and keep your personal time with God. Pray, believe and Faith in our Creator to do the rest.

Like I said, I’m no expert. And I’m not here to preach and judge. But, I’ve tried to learn as much as possible not only about Rugby but about life too through my years of coaching, watching and generally being a part of the youth sport. To be frank, most of it I’ve learned from my own failures and mistakes, and my own desire to try to improve.

But at the end of the day, there are lessons to be learned. Listen to your parents and your coaches advice so you will have a clear direction. They know us better. They can see our weakness & our strengths as well, Once again wish you happy International Youth day.

Remember you’re young… as long as you feel it….so Stay youthful, Stay safe & Stay connected…Together We can.