From a $7 note to a national honour: The legacy of Fiji’s Rio 2016 triumph

While the Rio 2016 winners of the women’s tournament, Australia, can be regarded as one of the most significant teams in the history of the short format, there is one team that serves as a worthy challenger to their legacy: the men’s gold winner from that very same Olympics.

It’s incredible to think that Tuesday only marks ten years to the day since Fiji’s famous victory: because it’s a victory that already feels well-etched into the history of rugby.

Marking the first time sevens rugby was ever played at the Olympics, the Fiji men’s team of Rio 2016 came to not only make history for the famous white jersey, but for their nation as a whole.

Having come into the tournament after winning two consecutive HSBC SVNS Series titles, Fiji were favourites – but victory was far from a guarantee, with the Blitzboks and All Blacks 7s right on their tails, as well as the amalgamated side that made up Great Britain.

The men from the islands also had the pressure of history – their nation having featured at 13 Summer Olympic Games and three Winter Olympics at the time – and having never won an Olympic medal of any kind.

Yet at the 2016 Olympics, 60 years since Fiji first competed on world stage, that would finally change.

Sweeping through the Pool stages with wins over Brazil, Argentina and the United States, the side found themselves up against arch rivals New Zealand in the quarterfinals, a typically tense clash that saw the men in black ahead 7-5 at halftime.

However, a critical score by Jerry Tuwai in the eighth minute saw the islanders prevail 12-7, and face a shot at earning their country a first ever Olympic medal, facing off against a Japan sevens side that had slayed the likes of France, New Zealand and Kenya to get there.

It was hard to ignore that there was something building behind the Fijians however, with their home nation making their voices heard of the joy the team was providing.

That joy was coloured by the fact the nation itself was rebuilding, having been devastated by Cyclone Winston in February that year.

When the semi finals began, and with history becoming, the Fiji Men’s side served up some of the best sevens rugby ever played in the history of the sport.

Overcoming a determined Japan with two late tries in the second half to win 20-5 in the semifinal, Fiji made the final and had secured their nation’s first ever Olympic medal.

But whether it would be gold or silver would be determined by the outcome against fellow finalists Great Britain, who had overcome South Africa 7-5 in the other semifinal, having also topped their pool to get to the big dance.

With their home nation behind them on the world’s biggest stage, Fiji blew the British off the park, scoring three tries in the first half and four in the second to run out 43-7 winners at Deodoro Stadium, writing themselves forever into rugby and Fijian folklore.

The image of the men breaking into a victory song became one of the viral moments of Rio 2016, with people from around the world celebrating Fiji’s first ever medal – and of course, it would be gold in the rugby sevens.

However, no place was it celebrated more than on the islands, the winning squad receiving the Order of Fiji for their achievement.

The Reserve Bank of Fiji famously commemorated the event with an historic $7 bank note, the only one of its kind in the world and well sought after by global currency collectors and rugby fans alike.

The 2016 Rio Olympics, like for Australia’s women, became a watershed moment for the Fiji Men – the side going on to defend their title at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, while the Fiji Women went on to claim the bronze medal that same year.

With the men also claiming the silver medal at the 2024 Paris Olympics, their success on the world’s biggest stage is unparalleled in the men’s tournament, with only New Zealand bettering them in terms of Olympic medal success.

On an individual team level, the Fiji Men’s team are on parity with the Black Ferns 7s as the most successful team, with both sides holding two golds and a silver medal.

But sometimes, medals mean more than just athletic success, or the start of a golden generation. Sometimes, they prove a key moment of unity in the history of a nation.

Fiji has a long, proud rugby history, their passion for rugby bordering on a religion and renowned throughout the world; more than earning the moniker of the ‘Flying Fijians’.

It is easy to forget how much they punch above their weight for a nation of just under one million people, and how much pressure that a nation so zealously in love with rugby can have on the players and coaching staff that take the field.

However, in 2016, the Fiji Men’s rugby side not only met that passion, but exceeded it, showing Fiji at its absolute best on the world stage, and creating legends about the game that will be talked about for generations to come.