New Zealand’s national rugby team, the All Blacks, recently welcomed a player named Leicester Fainga’anuku. (His first name is pronounced LEH-stir, just like “Lester.”)
Fainga’anuku was born in Tonga and grew up in New Zealand, but was named after a city in England.
Why?
Because, right around the time he was born, his father — a member of Tonga’s national rugby team — was abroad in England, playing in the 1999 Rugby World Cup. Specifically, Tonga was playing a match against Italy [vid] and unexpectedly won. As Leicester Fainga’anuku put it:
It was Leicester Stadium. They won by a dropped goal, three points and I think they were partying hard.
Sources:
- Knowler, Richard. “‘I didn’t hear my name’: Why Leicester Fainga’anuku missed big All Blacks news.” Stuff.co.nz 14 Jun. 2022.
- Tonga national rugby union team – Wikipedia
Image: Adapted from Rugby socks by Steven Lilley under CC BY-SA 2.0.
