Big Turnout Of Fans To Watch Fiji Train

The FIJI Water Flying Fijians have become an instant hit among the people of Pornic in France, when they had their first training run opened to the public on Sunday.

This was part of their preparatory camp ahead of the World Cup, which starts in September 8.

The Fijians face France, early this Sunday morning (Fiji time) in a friendly match at the Beaujoire Stadium in Nantes.

According to France Television, there was no sleeping in for Pornicais and tourists on Sunday, as they attended the Flying Fijians training session.

According to the report, women and men of all ages flocked before 9am. There were about 2500 spectators present to the astonishment of the town hall officials. They were able to watch the physical preparation of the players, led by a former strength and conditioning coach for the England team, David Sylvester.

The players went through their programme, which included cardio exercises, oval ball passes, push-ups and knee raises, all punctuated by laughter and communicative smiles.

The Fijians concluded their training with a poignant song, before meeting fans for autographs and photos.

“I am a supporter of the France team, but I am very happy to have been able to see the Fiji team training. They are a very good team with a superb state of mind”, said Jean- Sébastien Rauwel, a tourist from the Paris region.

This public training also delighted the likes of Frédéric Pennetier, who is part of the Rugby Club Pornicais leisure team.

“It was nice, we didn’t expect to see so many people there,” said Pennetier who will join a hundred club members to attend the preparation match between Fiji and France.

“We never imagined seeing so many supporters,” said Levani Botia, 34, a player at Stade Rochelais since 2014.

“It’s our first training session and the guys were very surprised to see a lot of fans coming to this kind of training, it’s great! “

Fans are looking forward to meeting the Flying Fijians again tomorrow.

Feedback: leonec@fijisun.com.fj