Belasio Koroiadi is delighted to play against his countrymen in the Oceania 7s Championship which starts today at the ANZ Stadium, Suva.

The 19-year-old has not been home in 16 years and rugby has given him a chance to visit his homeland playing for American Samoa.

“When I left Fiji I was three years old and I am finally back now,” Koroiadi said.

“I feel so glad to be back home, I don’t remember anything about Fiji from when I was little but it is beautiful here and I am so happy to be home.”

The Vuya, Bua native started out with 15s rugby and the transition to sevens has not been easy.

“I have been playing rugby nearly all my life since I was small,” he said.

“Moving from 15s to 7s has been good but really hard because of the different levels of fitness but it has been good so far.

“Training has been a grilling three month journey, it is tiring but we have had to pull through it and focus on what is important which is trying to get a good game and outing in the tournament.”

Playing for Fiji has always been a dream for Koroiadi but he is grateful to play on the same field as the Olympic champions.

“It will be a good experience playing against my home country in the Oceania 7s because they are the gold medallist in the Olympics.

“Playing for Fiji has been my dream since when I was little but since my mum is from American Samoa, I have had no choice but to play for them..”

American Samoa will play Fiji in their first game today at 12pm at the ANZ Stadium, Suva.

Edited by Osea Bola

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