Seremaia Bai
Seremaia Baïkeinuku (born 4 January 1979) is a retired Fijian rugby union player who played most recently for Leicester Tigers in the Aviva Premiership, and represented Fiji at a National level. He plays at both Fly-half and Inside Centre. Career Seremaia Bai finished his career playing for Leicester Tigers after joining them in 2014. He previously played for Castres Olympique and ASM Clermont Auvergne who both compete in France's Top 14 competition. He also plays for the Fiji national team and the Pacific Islanders. He has played under-19s, under 21s and under 23s for the Fiji national side. Bai attended Lelean Memorial School in Nausori, Fiji. He made his international debut for Fiji in 2000 in a match against Japan which Fiji won 47–22. That year he was also capped against Samoa, the USA, Canada and Italy. In 2001 he was capped three times, twice against Tonga and once against Samoa. In the second match against Tonga he broke his ankle. In 2002 he joined Southland for the ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Nausori
Nausori () is a town in Fiji. It had a population of 57,866 at the 2017 census. This makes it the fourth most populous municipality in the country. Situated 19 kilometers outside of Suva, it forms one pole of the burgeoning Suva-Nausori corridor. Nausori is home to three provinces Rewa, Tailevu and Naitasiri. The Rewa Bridge across the Rewa River, built by Fletcher Construction and opened in 2006, links Nausori to the capital, Suva. Economy There are two major business areas in Nausori - the town of Nausori proper, and Nakasi. A new market and bus terminal were opened in 2015, allowing for the town's future development. A major upgrade of the local airport, including a new terminal and a longer runway, was expected to get started in the first quarter of 2017. History The old town of Nausori was situated around 5 km north of the current one, heading towards Kasavu. The ruins of the old town, situated in Naduruloulou, are still there. Now, it is a tourist centre an ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Fiji
Fiji ( , ,; fj, Viti, ; Fiji Hindi: फ़िजी, ''Fijī''), officially the Republic of Fiji, is an island country in Melanesia, part of Oceania in the South Pacific Ocean. It lies about north-northeast of New Zealand. Fiji consists of an archipelago of more than 330 islands—of which about 110 are permanently inhabited—and more than 500 islets, amounting to a total land area of about . The most outlying island group is Ono-i-Lau. About 87% of the total population of live on the two major islands, Viti Levu and Vanua Levu. About three-quarters of Fijians live on Viti Levu's coasts: either in the capital city of Suva; or in smaller urban centres such as Nadi—where tourism is the major local industry; or in Lautoka, where the Sugarcane, sugar-cane industry is dominant. The interior of Viti Levu is sparsely inhabited because of its terrain. The majority of Fiji's islands were formed by Volcano, volcanic activity starting around 150 million years ago. Some geo ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Colonial Cup (rugby Union)
The Colonial Cup (named after sponsors The Colonial National Bank) is a defunct rugby union football competition that was played in Fiji between 2004 and 2008. The Colonial Cup was Fiji's first attempt at a professional rugby competition, but it did not draw sufficient crowds and ceased after five seasons. History In 2004, with the gap between provincial rugby in Fiji and test rugby at an unacceptable level, the Fiji Rugby Union introduced a brand new, streamlined competition to identify and prepare local players for the international stage. The 30-odd provincial unions were grouped into four franchises along geographical lines. Players not selected for one team could be picked up by one of the others. Players were paid £40 a week plus lodgings. The new competition started on 3 April 2004 and finished 22 May 2004 in time for the international test window. The four teams played a round-robin followed by semi-finals and a grand final. The Coastal Stallions held off a late rally ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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2003 Rugby World Cup
The 2003 Rugby World Cup was the fifth Rugby World Cup. Originally planned to be hosted by India, all games were shifted to Australia following a contractual dispute over ground signage rights between the Indian Rugby Union and Rugby World Cup Limited. The pre-event favourites were England, regarded by many at the time as the best team in the world. New Zealand, France, South Africa and defending champions Australia were also expected to make strong showings, with New Zealand being second favourites after victory in the southern-hemisphere Tri-Nations championship. The tournament began with host nation Australia defeating Argentina 24–8 at Stadium Australia in Sydney. Australia went on to defeat New Zealand 22–10 in the semi-final, to play England in the final. Along with a try to Jason Robinson, Jonny Wilkinson kicked four penalties and then a drop-goal in extra time to win the game 20–17 for England, who became the first northern hemisphere team to win the Webb Ellis C ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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National Provincial Championship (1976–2005)
The National Provincial Championship, often simply called the NPC, was an annual promotion and relegation rugby union competition in men's domestic New Zealand rugby. First played during the 1976 season, it was the highest level of competition in New Zealand until Super Rugby launched in 1996. It was organised by New Zealand Rugby (NZR) and ceased following the 2005 season. The league was restructured into two distinct competitions. The National Provincial Championship would include professional and semi-professional players, and consist of the top fourteen financial and best performing regional teams. For sponsorship reasons it was rebranded as the Air New Zealand Cup. The remaining teams would form a breakaway amateur competition known as the Heartland Championship. Twenty-eight teams had competed since the inception of the competition in 1976. Auckland were the most successful union with fifteen titles and Bay of Plenty were the inaugural champions. Six other teams had wo ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Tonga National Rugby Union Team
The Tonga national rugby union team ( to, timi feohi ʻakapulu fakafonua ʻa Tonga) represents Tonga in men's international rugby union. The team is nicknamed ''Ikale Tahi (Sea Eagles)''. Like their Polynesian neighbours, the Tongans start their matches with a traditional piece of performance art – the Sipi Tau. They are members of the Pacific Islands Rugby Alliance (PIRA) along with Fiji and Samoa. The Ikale Tahi achieved a historic 19–14 victory over France in the 2011 Rugby World Cup, but having lost to New Zealand and Canada, were unable to achieve what would have been their first-ever presence at the quarter-finals. History Rugby was brought to the region in the early 20th century by sailors and missionaries, and the Tonga Rugby Football Union was formed in late 1923. Tonga beat Fiji 9–6 in their first test in 1924 played in the capital Nukualofa. However, Tonga lost the second test 14–3 and drew the decider 0–0. Between 1924 and 1938 Tonga and Fiji played t ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Italy National Rugby Union Team
The Italy national rugby union team (Italian: ''Squadra nazionale italiana di rugby'') represents Italy in men's international rugby union. The team is known as ''gli Azzurri'' (the light-blues). Savoy blue is the common colour of the national teams representing Italy, as it is the traditional colour of the royal House of Savoy which reigned over the Kingdom of Italy from 1860 to 1946. Italy has played international rugby since 1929, and for decades was considered one of the best European teams outside the Five Nations Championship. Since 2000, Italy has competed annually in the Six Nations Championship with England, France, Ireland, Scotland and Wales. In 2013, they were holders of the Giuseppe Garibaldi Trophy which is played annually between Italy and France. Italy is ranked 14th in the world by the IRB as of 18 July 2022. Italian rugby rose to prominence in 2000 when it was added to the Five Nations, creating the Six Nations. Initially on the receiving end of some heavy de ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Canada National Rugby Union Team
The Canada national rugby union team (french: Équipe du Canada de rugby à XV) represents Canada in men's international rugby union competitions and is governed by Rugby Canada. Canada is classified by World Rugby as a tier two rugby nation and has competed in competitions such as the Americas Rugby Championship and the Rugby World Cup. Canada traditionally plays in red and white. Canada has been playing international rugby since their 1932 debut against Japan. Canada competed at every World Cup from the inagurual tournament in 1987 until its elimination at the hands of Chile during the 2023 qualifying process, breaking the 3 decades long record of uninterrupted attendance. Canada achieved their best result at the World Cup in 1991, where they reached the quarterfinals. Canada was once the dominant power of North American rugby and was the second-best team in the Americas. Before the professionalization of rugby, Canada were known to upset stronger teams, having defeated Fra ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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United States National Rugby Union Team
The United States men's national rugby union team represents the United States in men's international rugby union. Nicknamed the Eagles, it is controlled by USA Rugby, the national governing body for the sport of rugby union in the United States. USA Rugby is a member of Rugby Americas North, one of six regional governing bodies under World Rugby. Until rugby returned to Olympic competition, with sevens at the 2016 Rio Games, the United States was the reigning Olympic rugby champion, having defeated the one other competitor in 1920 and the two other competitors at the 1924 Summer Olympics. , the men's Eagles are ranked 19th in the world by the World Rugby Rankings. Their previous highest ranking was 12th, achieved ahead of the 2019 World Cup. The team's lowest ranking was 20th, first following a winless campaign in the 2008 Churchill Cup and second for a single week in 2022 during the 2023 World Cup qualifying tournament. The highest profile tournament in which the men' ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Samoa National Rugby Union Team
The Samoa national rugby union team (also known as Manu Samoa) represents Samoa in men's international rugby union and it is governed by the Samoa Rugby Union. They are also known as Manu Samoa, which is thought to derive from the name of a Samoan warrior. They perform a traditional Samoan challenge called the siva tau before each game. Samoa Rugby Union were formerly members of the Pacific Islands Rugby Alliance (PIRA) along with Fiji and Tonga. They are ranked 11th in the world. Rugby was introduced to Samoa in the early 1920s and a governing body was soon formed. The first international was played as Western Samoa against Fiji in August 1924. Along with Tonga, these nations would meet regularly and eventually contest competitions such as the Pacific Tri-Nations – with Western Samoa winning the first of these. From 1924 to 1997 Samoa was known as Western Samoa. Samoa have been to every Rugby World Cup since the 1991 tournament. That tournament, along with the 1995 compe ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Japan National Rugby Union Team
The Japan national rugby union team, often known as the Cherry Blossoms, Sakura, and more recently The Brave Blossoms (''ブレイブ・ブロッサムズ - Bureibu burossamuzu'') is traditionally the strongest rugby union power in Asia and has enjoyed and endured mixed results against non-Asian teams over the years. Rugby union in Japan is administered by the Japan Rugby Football Union (JRFU), which was founded in 1926. They compete annually in the Pacific Nations Cup and previously in the Asia Rugby Championship. They have also participated in every Rugby World Cup since the tournament began in 1987. Rugby was first played in Japan's treaty ports as early as 1866. Popular participation by local university teams was established in 1899 and Japan's first recorded international match was a match against a Canadian team in 1932. Notable games for Japan include a victory over the Junior All Blacks in 1968, and a narrow 6–3 loss to England in 1971. Famous wins by Japan include a 2 ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |