Naca Cawanibuka on fijivillage Straight Talk With Vijay Narayan

The Fiji Men’s Rugby 7s team needs to understand that winning the first two gold medals in the Rio and Tokyo Olympics gives them no right to think that they will win gold again in Paris.

This was highlighted by former Fiji 7s Strength and Conditioning Coach and current Swire Shipping Fijian Drua Head of Athletics Performance Nacanieli Cawanibuka while speaking on fijivillage Straight Talk with Vijay Narayan.

Cawanibuka says this is going to be a clear scoreboard, a level playing field and it is going to be anyone's game.

He says the Olympic Games is something that Fiji has been blessed to have built a legacy around with the previous two gold medal wins, and now the team going into this year’s Olympics is a fresh new slate but the players know the weight on their shoulders.

He adds as much as the players will try and put the weight on their shoulders aside, they know that the expectations from the fans are there.

Cawaniubuka also mentioned how coach Osea Kolinisau wanted to put a big emphasis on getting support from former national players and current senior players like Fiji 7s legend Jerry Tuwai.

He says having Tuwai and some players and staff from the previous Tokyo campaign again in the team for this Olympics is a big influence and very important as well in terms of mental preparations.

Cawanibuka says having former coach Gareth Baber assisting the team as well is also crucial for the team’s preparation.

Fiji will face Uruguay at 3am next Thursday in their first match, they will then take on the USA at 6.30am on the same day, before playing hosts France at 1.30am next Friday in their final pool match.

The Men’s quarter finals will kick off at 7am next Friday. The semi finals will kick off at 1.30am next Sunday, and the final will be at 5.45am Sunday.

It is important for Team Fiji to ‘park’ social media distractions aside if they want to achieve success at the Paris Olympics which starts this Thursday.

This was highlighted by former Fiji Men’s 7s Strength and Conditioning Coach Naca Cawanibuka while speaking on fijivillage Straight Talk with Vijay Narayan about the importance of mental preparation for our team at the Olympics.

Cawanibuka says while he was still with the Fiji Men’s 7s side, the team adopted a social media blackout rule before the 2016 Las Vegas 7s tournament to keep the players away from being distracted by the sad news of Tropical Cyclone Winston that hit Fiji back then.

He says they continued using that rule heading into the Rio Olympics and it worked out well for the team which resulted in their first-ever Olympics gold medal win.

Cawanibuka says he does not know if the team still practices that rule nowadays, but it definitely would be helpful if they bring that rule back. Fiji will face Uruguay at 3am Thursday in their first match, they will then take on the USA at 6.30am on the same day, before playing hosts France at 1.30am Friday in their final pool match.

The opening ceremony of the Paris Olympics will be held on Saturday.

The Men’s quarter finals will kick off at 7am Friday, the semi finals will kick off at 1.30am this Sunday, and the final will be at 5.45am Sunday.

Former Fiji 7s Strength and Conditioning coach and the man behind the success of Fiji’s Olympics gold medal wins in Rio and Tokyo, Naca Cawanibuka has warned Team Fiji Rugby Men’s 7s side to be ready for the loud noises from the crowd on game day.

While speaking on fijivillage Straight Talk with Vijay Narayan, Cawanibuka says he hopes the players are ready mentally to cope with the external influence as it can put them off their game.

He mentioned how he went with the Fiji Water Flying Fijians to play France in Nantes last year, and a few of the Swire Shipping Fijian Drua players who were part of the team were surprised by the lights and the noise from the crowd.

He says he has had the privilege to visit a few stadiums around the world but the French stadiums are the loudest.

The Fijian Drua Head of Athletics says history has shown that Paris has been a happy hunting ground for Fiji as they have won a few big games there including the Paris 7s and also winning the 2019 HSBC World 7s Series in Paris.

Cawanibuka says the Flying Fijians have also beaten France in Paris back in 2018.

Fiji will face Uruguay at 3am Thursday in their first match, they will then take on the USA at 6.30am on the same day, before playing hosts France at 1.30am Friday in their final pool match.

The Men’s quarter finals will kick off at 7am Friday.

There will be a break on Saturday for the official opening of the Paris Olympics 2024 before the competition resumes on Sunday.

The semi finals will kick off at 1.30am Sunday, and the final will be at 5.45am Sunday.