By William Stanton
Many of you may know the golden boy, or at least know him by his golden mullet. Ami Manu (’25) is currently in his third semester at Southern Virginia University and was recruited here to play rugby by Coach David Smyth. On the rugby team, Manu plays fullback and has been a starter in each of the three seasons he’s been here. The journey for Manu to Buena Vista was a long one, including 8,500 miles and three different states.
Manu was born in Hamilton, Waikato, New Zealand. He attended St. Paul’s Collegiate school and had to choose between soccer or rugby. Manu started playing flag rugby when he was five years old and transitioned into tackle rugby when he was eight years old. Manu has been fully committed to rugby ever since. At the age of 17, Manu packed up and moved halfway across the Pacific Ocean to the island of Maui, Hawaii, where he would spend his junior and senior year at Lahaina-Luna High School. After graduating, he moved to Herriman, Utah and shortly after, moved to Seattle, Washington. Manu first heard about Southern Virginia from some close friends that previously attended the University. The main thing that brought Manu to Southern Virginia was the small student population, which he felt would help aid in his educational success. He liked that Buena Vista was more rural and farmlands, it reminded him of home in New Zealand.
Manu is currently undeclared in his major, but hopes to pursue architecture. Some of his favorite things about Buena Vista is the scenery of the Blue Ridge Mountains and the local people (who he felt were very welcoming and friendly). When asked about his favorite things of Southern Virginia, he instantly replied with, “The cafeteria is pretty sweet!” He also likes how small the classroom sizes are and feels that this allows for a better education and relationship with each professor. In his free time, Manu likes to try and stay on top of his school work and practice for rugby.
Outside of playing for the University’s rugby team, Manu had the opportunity to travel with National Athletic Village Rugby team out of North Carolina to Houston, Texas over Christmas break where they took 1st in the Freetail 7s tournament, a national men’s club tournament. Manu was invited to participate in the Under 18 All-America 7s camps and Under 20 USA Touch rugby tournament in Houston, Texas. For this upcoming summer, Manu will be playing with Life West in San Francisco, California and has been invited to participate in the USA Rugby summer camp held at the Olympic training facility in Chula Vista, California.
After Manu graduates from Southern Virginia, he plans on getting a job in either architecture or any form of construction. During his free time, he hopes to still play rugby, and if the opportunity arises, play professional rugby for as long as possible.
Make sure to come out and support Manu and his rugby teammates as they compete throughout the year!
How Ami Manu Ended Up In Buena Vista, Virginia was originally published in The Herald on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.