War Hero Presents Jersey To The Flying Fijians
Former British Army soldier and British Paralympic thrower Derek Derenalagi presented the Flying Fijians players in the Match 23 squad their jerseys before tomorrow morning’s Test clash against England.
Saturday 26 August 2023 | 10:58
Flying Fijian flanker Albert Tuisue receives his jersey for Derek Derenalagi in London on August 25, 2023. Photo: FRU Media
Former British Army soldier and British Paralympic thrower Derek Derenalagi presented the Flying Fijians players in the Match 23 squad their jerseys before tomorrow morning’s Test clash against England.
Derenalagi hails from Nakavu Village in Nadi and joined the British Army in 1999.
In July 2007, he was on a tour of duty in Helmand Province in Afghanistan, when his vehicle was hit by an improvised explosive device.
On his return from Camp Bastion, Derenalagi was pronounced dead but while preparing his body for a body bag, medical staff found that he still had a pulse. As a result of the injuries he sustained, both of Derenalagi's legs were amputated above the knee. In a coma, he was flown back to the UK where, nine days later, he woke up in Selly Oak Hospital in Birmingham.
Derenalagi is part of the Ministry of Defence’s Battle Back programme, funded by the Help for Heroes charity. He is the first Fijian selected to represent Great Britain in the Paralympics.
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