Eliota Fuimaono-Sapolu (born 31 October 1980 in

Apia Apia () is the Capital (political), capital and largest city of Samoa, as well as the nation's only city. It is located on the central north coast of Upolu, Samoa's second-largest island. Apia falls within the political district (''itūmālō ...

Samoa Samoa, officially the Independent State of Samoa; sm, Sāmoa, and until 1997 known as Western Samoa, is a Polynesian island country consisting of two main islands (Savai'i and Upolu); two smaller, inhabited islands (Manono Island, Manono an ...

) is a Samoan former

rugby union footballer Rugby union, commonly known simply as rugby, is a close-contact team sport that originated at Rugby School in the first half of the 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand. In its m ...

. He played at

centre Center or centre may refer to: Mathematics *Center (geometry), the middle of an object * Center (algebra), used in various contexts ** Center (group theory) ** Center (ring theory) * Graph center, the set of all vertices of minimum eccentricity ...

. During his career, he received considerably media attention for his constant criticism of the rugby establishment at what he perceived to be

racism Racism is the belief that groups of humans possess different behavioral traits corresponding to inherited attributes and can be divided based on the superiority of one race over another. It may also mean prejudice, discrimination, or antagonism ...

post-colonialism Postcolonialism is the Critical theory, critical academic study of the cultural, political and economic legacy of colonialism and imperialism, focusing on the impact of human control and exploitation of colonized people and their lands. More speci ...

white supremacy White supremacy or white supremacism is the belief that white people are superior to those of other races and thus should dominate them. The belief favors the maintenance and defense of any power and privilege held by white people. White su ...

and lack of accountability in rugby's governing bodies.

Early life and education

Fuimaono-Sapolu was born in Samoa and migrated to

Auckland Auckland (pronounced ) ( mi, Tāmaki Makaurau) is a large metropolitan city in the North Island of New Zealand. The List of New Zealand urban areas by population, most populous urban area in the country and the List of cities in Oceania by po ...

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...

, with his parents, when he was three years old. He started off at schools in

Manurewa Manurewa is a major suburb in South Auckland, New Zealand. It was part of Manukau City before the creation of the Auckland super city in 2010. It is located south of the Manukau, Manukau City Centre, and southeast of Auckland CBD. The subur ...

dominated by Pacific Island and Maori students. His family was very poor when they first arrived in New Zealand, living in a one-bedroom flat while both parents were studying. He moved to the prestigious

Auckland Grammar School Auckland (pronounced ) ( mi, Tāmaki Makaurau) is a large metropolitan city in the North Island of New Zealand. The most populous urban area in the country and the fifth largest city in Oceania, Auckland has an urban population of about I ...

for high school, although not on a scholarship. He said he enjoyed school until he began asking questions about what he was learning. Fuimaono-Sapolu said although his awareness of racism had been growing during his schooling, it became much clearer at university, where he first learned about the

Treaty of Waitangi The Treaty of Waitangi ( mi, Te Tiriti o Waitangi) is a document of central importance to the history, to the political constitution of the state, and to the national mythos of New Zealand. It has played a major role in the treatment of the M ...

Rugby career

Fuimaono-Sapolu first played club rugby as a junior for

RFC in

South Auckland South Auckland is an imprecisely defined urban area of Auckland, New Zealand, with a young population, a relatively large Polynesian and Māori demographic, and lower incomes than other parts of Auckland. The name ''South Auckland'', though not ...

, New Zealand, where he received praise for his commitment, technique, and discipline. Fuimaono-Sapolu moved to England in January 2006, signed by Bath Rugby after impressive performances in the internationals against

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the ...

(his international debut for Samoa) and

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

. He had initially been signed as a temporary replacement to cover for the players playing in the

Six Nations Championship The Six Nations Championship (known as the Guinness Six Nations for sponsorship reasons) is an annual international men's rugby union competition between the teams of England, France, Ireland, Italy, Scotland and Wales. The current champions ar ...

, but soon his contract was made permanent. Since arriving at Bath he has won the approval of many fans due to his exciting running and quick hands. More recently he displayed his all round ability in back play at the

2007 Rugby World Cup The 2007 Rugby World Cup was the sixth Rugby World Cup, a quadrennial international rugby union competition inaugurated in 1987. Twenty nations competed for the Webb Ellis Cup in the tournament, which was hosted by France from 7 September to 2 ...

, in which he represented Samoa playing out of position at fly-half. Although his side lost to

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countri ...

and – surprisingly –

Tonga Tonga (, ; ), officially the Kingdom of Tonga ( to, Puleʻanga Fakatuʻi ʻo Tonga), is a Polynesian country and archipelago. The country has 171 islands – of which 45 are inhabited. Its total surface area is about , scattered over in ...

while beating only the

USA The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

in the pool stages of the tournament, Fuimaono-Sapolu was one of the standout performers. In the summer of 2009 Fuimaono-Sapolu left Bath to join Gloucester Rugby on a one-year contract that was later extended for two further seasons. In 2011 Eliota completed an impressive season by sweeping up all the club's major awards at the end of Season prize giving. He won Player of the year, Try of the Year, Player's Player of the year and Season Ticket Holder's Player of the year. In 2011 he was

shortlisted A short list or shortlist is a list of candidates for a job, prize, award, political position, etc., that has been reduced from a longer list of candidates (sometimes via intermediate lists known as "long lists"). The length of short lists varie ...

by the

Rugby Players' Association The Rugby Players Association (RPA) is a trade union representing athletes who currently play or have played rugby union in England at a professional or semi-professional level. The RPA is the representative body and collective voice of profession ...

for their Players' Player of the Year award alongside

Chris Ashton Christopher John Ashton (born 29 March 1987) is an English rugby union and former rugby league player, and one of the few players who have represented England in both rugby codes. A wing or fullback, he joined Leicester Tigers of Premiership ...

Chris Budgen Chris Budgen is a retired rugby player. He played for Bridgend RFC from 1999-2001 then played the majority of his professional career for Exeter Chiefs and Northampton Saints in the Aviva Premiership. He made his debut for Exeter on 30 September ...

, Nick Evans,

Thomas Waldrom Thomas Waldrom (born 28 April 1983) is a former rugby union player who played for Exeter Chiefs in the English Premiership and represented England from 2012 to 2013. Born in Lower Hutt, New Zealand, he qualified for England through his grandmot ...

and Tom Wood. In March 2012, it was announced Sapolu would leave Gloucester to sign with Japanese side Coca-Cola West Red Sparks on a two-year contract. Fuimaono-Sapolu left the side after the 2014-2015 season, and retired from the game. He now works as a lawyer.

Playing style

Primarily a centre, Fuimaono-Sapolu was a powerful physical presence in the midfield. This, combined with a precise passing game and an acute rugby brain, made him a complete back. In 2011, while playing for Gloucester, a video of an outrageous dummy playing against the Newport-Gwent Dragons went viral.

Personal life and activism

Fuimaono-Sapolu is a qualified lawyer. He has been openly critical of the sporting elite, alleging racism in their attitude which "buys into the narrative of the savage Polynesian". Critical of the IRB handling of his comments in 2011 he said they just wouldn't tolerate a Polynesian speaking up. He's been vocal about racism in the sport of rugby union, and cites his time at

Gloucester Gloucester ( ) is a cathedral city and the county town of Gloucestershire in the South West of England. Gloucester lies on the River Severn, between the Cotswolds to the east and the Forest of Dean to the west, east of Monmouth and east ...

as an example. In 2011, after having a stellar season playing for the club, he was about to renegotiate the terms of his contract. However, he was told by the management that he couldn't be paid more than a Scottish player. In 2016, he criticised the appointment of renowned Sevens coach Sir Gordon Tietjens as the new head coach of the Samos Sevens team. He criticized Tietjens for not speaking the Samoan language, and for what he described as a lack of understanding of the country and its culture. He also questioned why rugby's eligibility rules were so tight for players and so loose for coaches. One of Fuimaono-Sapolu's dearest causes has been to fight racism in sport and education, and to support fellow Polynesians, specially the younger generations. He questioned the over commercialization of the All Blacks brand, stating that the All Blacks' identity "is stolen from Maori culture". Fuimaono-Sapolu has worked extensively to broaden popular knowledge of the contribution of Pacific Island culture and science. He moved to Samoa where he works on raising awareness of domestic abuse and misogynism.

Social media and controversies

Fuimaono-Sapolu's use of social media (specially Twitter) has repeatedly landed him in trouble with rugby's governing bodies. During the

2011 Rugby World Cup The 2011 Rugby World Cup was the seventh Rugby World Cup, a quadrennial international rugby union competition inaugurated in 1987. The International Rugby Board (IRB) selected New Zealand as the host country in preference to Japan and South Af ...

, he made a Twitter post linking the scheduling of the World Cup to

slavery Slavery and enslavement are both the state and the condition of being a slave—someone forbidden to quit one's service for an enslaver, and who is treated by the enslaver as property. Slavery typically involves slaves being made to perf ...

the Holocaust The Holocaust, also known as the Shoah, was the genocide of European Jews during World War II. Between 1941 and 1945, Nazi Germany and its collaborators systematically murdered some six million Jews across German-occupied Europe; a ...

and

apartheid Apartheid (, especially South African English: , ; , "aparthood") was a system of institutionalised racial segregation that existed in South Africa and South West Africa (now Namibia) from 1948 to the early 1990s. Apartheid was ...

, after Samoa had 3 days to prepare for their match against

Wales Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the Wales–England border, east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the ...

, while Wales had a week to prepare. Officials that met with the Samoa team management accepted an official apology and decided that no further action was necessary. Later in the tournament when Samoa lost to South Africa, Fuimaono-Sapolu tweeted that referee

Nigel Owens Nigel Owens, (born 18 June 1971) is a Welsh former international rugby union referee, who retired in December 2020 after a 17-year career. He currently holds the world record for the most test matches refereed and is one of five international re ...

was "racist" and "biased", which resulted in him being suspended from rugby for six months. However, this punishment was suspended for two years after he retracted his comments, apologies to Owens, and served 100 hours of Rugby community work in Samoa. In 2011, he was handed a three-week ban by the

Rugby Football Union The Rugby Football Union (RFU) is the Sports governing body, national governing body for rugby union in England. It was founded in 1871, and was the sport's international governing body prior to the formation of what is now known as World Rugby ...

after he criticized its disciplinary process, the

Rugby World Cup The Rugby World Cup is a men's rugby union tournament contested every four years between the top international teams. The tournament is administered by World Rugby, the sport's international governing body. The winners are awarded the Webb E ...

and the

International Rugby Board World Rugby is the world governing body for the sport of rugby union. World Rugby organises the Rugby World Cup every four years, the sport's most recognised and most profitable competition. It also organises a number of other international rug ...

. He has also criticized other rugby players, officials, and

World Rugby World Rugby is the world governing body for the sport of rugby union. World Rugby organises the Rugby World Cup every four years, the sport's most recognised and most profitable competition. It also organises a number of other international rug ...

via Twitter. He has also been critical of the perceived lack of political engagement from professional rugby players, citing former

All Blacks The New Zealand national rugby union team, commonly known as the All Blacks ( mi, Ōpango), represents New Zealand in men's international rugby union, which is considered the country's national sport. The team won the Rugby World Cup in 1987 ...

captain

Richie McCaw Richard Hugh McCaw (born 31 December 1980) is a retired New Zealand professional rugby union player. He captained the national team, the All Blacks, in 110 out of his 148 test matches, and won two Rugby World Cups. He has won the World Rugby ...

as someone who could have a big influence if he got behind social issues.

References

External links

ESPN Scrum Profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Fuimaono-Sapolu, Eliota 1980 births Living people Samoan expatriate rugby union players Samoan rugby union players Rugby union fly-halves Rugby union centres Bath Rugby players Gloucester Rugby players Samoa international rugby union players Samoan expatriate sportspeople in England Samoan expatriate sportspeople in Japan Samoan expatriate sportspeople in New Zealand Expatriate rugby union players in England Expatriate rugby union players in Japan Expatriate rugby union players in New Zealand Rugby union players from Apia 2007 Rugby World Cup players 2011 Rugby World Cup players