The Pacific Rugby Players Welfare Chief Executive Daniel Leo who is an ex-Samoa captain is now saying that he is considering writing to the International Olympic Committee to ask for 7s rugby to be suspended from the Olympics while the Fiji Rugby Union has already made it clear in an earlier statement that it does not recognize Leo or his organization.
According to the Daily Mail and Fox Sports, Leo is calling for an investigation into Fiji Rugby Union Chairman, Francis Kean and the unions which supported his nomination for the World Rugby Executive Committee seat, as well as stronger vetting processes to avoid a similar situation.
Leo says they are taking advice from their lawyers about a letter they are drafting to the IOC.
He says he is disappointed that World Rugby have not launched an open investigation into Kean and France for nominating him.
Leo says if World Rugby don’t commit to governance reforms, their next letter will be to the International Olympic Committee, asking that they consider suspending rugby as an Olympic sport until they are fully compliant with IOC obligations.
He says if it takes some short-term pain, i.e. being blocked from the Olympics, then so be it but hopefully the sport can be proactive in this before that would happen.
Kean resigned from the World Rugby Council and the FRU withdrew his name from the nominations for the world body’s executive committee in the upcoming elections.
Meanwhile the Fiji Rugby Union joined their Samoan counterparts in 2018 in criticising a campaign by Daniel Leo’s Pacific Rugby Players Welfare, that aimed to highlight the lack of Pacific representation on the World Rugby Council.
FRU CEO, John O’Connor had said that they had submitted Fiji’s application for inclusion as a member on the World Rugby Council based on the hard work, commitment and drive from the FRU Board supported by the FRU Council and they have no association with Pacific Rugby Players Welfare Director Dan Leo, nor has he any involvement with the FRU.
O’Connor said Leo does not speak on behalf of FRU nor the Fijian players.
The Fiji Rugby Union said it was working closely with Pacific Rugby Players, who it recognises as the official representative of Fijian rugby players.
O’Connor says he is proud to say that Fiji is the first Pacific Union to have a partnership Agreement with PRP which had resulted in the first full-time Professional Development Manager based in the FRU and working closely with all the elite players, clubs, schools and our national teams.
He stressed that they acknowledge that the PRP (Pacific Rugby Players) are the only recognised representatives of Pacific Rugby Players.
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