Dubai: Jonah Lomu’s greatest legacy was to help get rugby sevens into the Olympics, according to a friend of the legendary All Black, Qais Al Dhalai, the general secretary of UAE rugby.
Lomu was in Dubai with Al Dhalai this time last year on one of his many stopovers in the city on his way back from the 2015 Rugby World Cup in England to his home in Auckland, New Zealand, where he died of a heart attack aged 40 on November 18.
Jonah’s last tweet was to thank Qais for his hospitality with pictures of the pair taken underneath the Burj Khalifa in Dubai Downtown.
“On his last night in Dubai we had dinner and then I dropped him off to his hotel in Mina Seyahi,” Al Dhalai told Gulf News. “I hugged the kids, said goodbye and then the following morning I called him while he was waiting for his flight, 24 hours later I got the call that this had happened, it was a big tragedy.
“Of course part of his legacy is that we are all still thinking about him, but we should also never forget that part of rugby being included into the Olympics was down to him, he was an integral part of that bidding team.
“He really did a lot for our sport where nobody else could, so we have to be thankful that we had a person like Jonah to get sevens into the Olympics, which is the ultimate aim of any sport.
“This is his biggest achievement and legacy, that rugby is now watched by an audience of millions worldwide because of him,” said Al Dhalai in reference to sevens making its debut at this summer’s Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
“It was a big success in Rio and will be again in Tokyo without forgetting that next summer there will be a vote to decide whether sevens will become a permanent Olympic sport, because at the moment it is not.
“All my sources say that sevens will remain part of the Olympics but we are keeping our fingers crossed that come next summer we will once again be able to thank Jonah and the whole team behind that initial bidding process.”
Getting sevens into the Olympics had helped spread the game beyond the founding nations and into new markets like the UAE, added Al Dhalai.
“Now every Olympic Committee from every country will put sevens in their sights because they know that if they can form a competitive team, they might one day make it to that arena, and he was part of that.”
Al Dhalai said another of Lomu’s legacy projects had been put on hold due to his death.
“I have to reveal that we had reached the end stages of forming the Jonah Lomu Academy in Dubai, London and Tokyo, and that was a big plan reaching a nice end but it got put on hold and we have to respect that.
“We are in discussions and I cannot comment further but I want to be honest, this was an upcoming project we had worked on together, time will tell if it continues, watch this space.”
Asked if Al Dhalai had ever considered offering Lomu a coaching role with UAE rugby, he replied: “He used to tell me: ‘I don’t need to be the UAE head coach because I’m always at your disposal, whenever you need me I’m here,’ and he was, this became a reality.
“Jonah was always visiting Dubai and he really felt at home here, he was just in the process of finalising his relocation to Dubai with his family.
“He used to go to Zabeel Park by himself to go and meet the players and train with them. I didn’t even ask him, he just said can he go and I said ‘of course’, he would also go up to the Sevens Stadium to train with them there, where can you find a sports star like that?
“He was very humble, although he was a global sporting icon, when I walked with him anywhere in Dubai he would stop for selfies with fans, I’ve seen lots of examples of lesser known athletes rejecting fans and that was the big difference with him.
“He was a very honest person, if he didn’t like something he wouldn’t hide it, he would just say, and that’s the purest element of any person, when you have something inside, you get it out. People might not like it but it doesn’t matter, at least you have been honest to yourself and the people you are talking to, that’s what I liked about Jonah.”
While Al Dhalai has a number of functions to attend this week to commemorate Lomu a year on from his death, he said only one would stand the test of time.
“Charity dinners and fundraisers will not last and funds will run out, but not the Olympics, that will last forever.”
