Fiji's Women Rugby Players: Finding Motivation in a ‘Hostile’ Environment

In the Pacific island country of Fiji, where men’s rugby union enjoys immense popularity as a ‘national’ sport and a pinnacle of indigenous masculinity, a small community of women have actively pursued the game since the late 1980s. Until recently, they received little institutional or public support, and faced negative social sanctions for playing the hyper-masculine sport. But the Fijiana, the women’s national team, have made remarkable accomplishments in the last few years, including their qualification, along with only 11 other countries in the world, for the 2016 Summer Olympics. These achievements have significantly increased institutional and public support, although club registration remains low and limited resources (compared to those available to men’s rugby) are allocated to the development of women’s rugby. Given both the historical challenges and the remarkable recent achievements of Fijian women rugby players, this chapter, based on a mixed-method study consisting of a questionnaire survey (n = 70) and focus group discussions (n = 12), explores their motivations for playing rugby and continued involvement in the game against adversities as well as the key obstacles