The England-born coach of Fiji’s gold medal-winning rugby sevens team, Ben Ryan, has been awarded one of the Pacific nation’s highest civil honours at a ceremony in Suva.
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The squad are now in Suva for another welcome at the national stadium.
While speaking at Special Fiji 7s team Gold Medal celebrations, Konrote says the team has brought us honor and more global attention than at any other time.
Ben Ryan has been made a Companion of the Order of Fiji following his success with the sevens team at Rio 2016.
The Fijian president also announced that the government will award each of the rugby team players 30,000 Fiji dollars (14,700 USA dollars) as a gesture of appreciation on behalf of all Fijians for their “tremendous achievement”.
He thanked the team for setting a standard for every Fijian to follow.
Prime Minister Voreqe Bainimarama said it was a moment to be cherished forever.
Ryan, a self-described “44-year-old ginger bloke with glasses” has become the most revered person in Fiji since he guided the sevens team to a 43-7 hiding of Great Britain in the Olympic final to deliver Fiji its first Olympic medal. During the celebrations at the national stadium, a replay of the Fijian rugby team’s gold medal winning game was shown on a giant screen, prompting a cheering spree.
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Fiji had been planning to make amends to its national flag to remove colonial symbols, but following the Olympic win last week, Mr Bainimarama said the decision would be held off.
