Manaia Nuku
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Born | (2002-09-03) 3 September 2002 (age 23) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Height | 1.69 m (5 ft 7 in) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Weight | 68 kg (150 lb) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Medal record
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Manaia Nuku (born 3 September 2002) is a New Zealand rugby sevens player. She won a gold medal at the 2024 Summer Olympics as a member of the Black Ferns sevens team.
Manaia Nuku was born on 3 September 2002 to Gina and Wallace Nuku.[1] Her mother was a schoolteacher and her father a linesman.[2] Her sister Te Whetumarama Nuku played rugby league for the New Zealand Warriors in the WNRL.[2]
Nuku attended Hamilton Girls' High School which has produced New Zealand Sevens players Jazmin Felix-Hotham, Shiray Kaka, Terina Te Tamaki, and Tenika Willison.[1][3]
Rugby career
She made her debut for Waikato in the Farah Palmer Cup in 2020.[4]
After making an impression at the 2020 Ignite7 tournament in 2020[1][5] she was given a full-time rugby sevens contract with the Black Ferns Sevens in 2021.[4][6]
She was a non-travelling reserve for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.[7]
Nuku played for the Black Ferns Pango team at the 2022 Oceania Sevens at Pukekohe.[8] She was named as a non-travelling reserve for the Black Ferns Sevens squad for the 2022 Commonwealth Games in Birmingham.[9][10]
She was a non-travelling reserve for the 2022 Commonwealth Games in Birmingham.[11]
She was a travelling reserve for the 2022 World Cup held in Cape Town in September 2022. [12]
2023 Premier Rugby Sevens
Nuku expanded her international playing career in 2023 when in May of that year she announced that she was going to play in the United States of America for Premier Rugby Sevens. Nuku signed with the New York Locals, playing alongside Black Ferns teammates Stacey Waaka and Tenika Willison.[13][14][15]
Nuku fit in with the Locals right off the bat, totaling 14 points, two tries, 4 ball carries, and three tackles in the first tournament of the season. Nuku aided the team to a 1-1 finish at the Eastern Conference Kickoff at Q2 Stadium in Austin, Tx., topping the Texas Team, 31-17[16] and then falling to the Southern Headliners, 21-12[17] in the tournament final.[18]
The Locals and Nuku found similar results in the Eastern Conference Finals at Highmark Stadium in Pittsburgh, Pa. ending 1-1. The Locals defeated the Pittsburgh Steeltoes, 22-14[19] to then fall to the Headliners once again in the final.[20] At the Eastern Conference Finals, Nuku tallied two tries, 12 points, three carries, six tackles, and one steal.[21]
New York advanced to the Premier Rugby Sevens Championship at Audi Field in Washington, D.C. where Nuku and the Locals finally got revenge over the Headliners. The Locals defeated the Headliners 17-14,[22] advancing to the Championship match. The Locals ended the season taking second place after falling, 21-10[23] to the Northern Loonies in the title game. At the Championship Tournament, Nuku ended with one try, seven points, four carries, eight tackles, and one steal.[24]
Nuku ended her first PR7s season with 33 points, five tries, 17 tackles, 11 carries, and two steals. At the end of the year, Nuku was named the 2023 Premier Rugby Sevens Defensive Player of the Year.[25]
2024 Olympics
On 20 June 2024 it was announced that she had been selected as a member of the New Zealand Women’s Rugby Sevens team for the Paris Olympics.[26] The team won the gold medal, defeating Canada 19-12 in the final.[27]
In October 2024 New Zealand Rugby announced that Nuku was among the 17 players that were contacted for 2025.[28]
ACL Injury
On 30 March 2025 she ruptured a anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) in the final against Australia at the 2025 Hong Kong tournament on after landing awkwardly and had to be carried from the field.[29] After the game she was piggybacked by a fellow team member to the medal presentation and to the haka in which she joined in teammates.[30] The injury ruled her out from playing for the rest of the season.
Nuku’s managed return from injury saw her travelling a non-playing member with the team to the 2026 Singapore and Perth tournaments.
In late February 2026 she re-signed with New Zealand Rugby through to the Olympics in 2028.
She was a member of the official travelling squad for the Vancouver and New York tournament but it wasn’t until the latter event held on 14–15 March 2026 that after 349 days on the injury list she played again the New Zealand team a try in her first game, a 46-5 pool-play win against Great Britain.[30] It was her 17th HSBC SVNS tournament appearance. [1]
She normally plays at fullback as well as kicking both restarts and conversions. [1]
References
- 1 2 3 4 5 Julian, Adam (17 April 2026). "'There was a dark and challenging time': Nuku ready to make up for lost time". RugbyPass. Retrieved 17 April 2026.
- 1 2 Julian, Adam (6 March 2024). "From Touch Rugby to Sevens Sensation: Manaia Nuku's Journey to the Top". All Blacks. Retrieved 17 April 2026.
- ↑ Goile, Aaron (5 February 2021). "How one school produced a quarter of the 2021 Black Ferns Sevens squad". Stuff. Retrieved 4 July 2022.
- 1 2 Stanley, Ashley (29 January 2021). "Manaia Nuku latest sevens star from Hamilton Girls". Newsroom. Retrieved 4 July 2022.
- ↑ "Teams selected for 2020 Red Bull Ignite7". New Zealand Rugby. Retrieved 31 January 2020.
- ↑ "Kelly Brazier energised by "scary but exciting" Black Ferns talent - HSBC World Rugby Sevens Series". World Rugby. 9 February 2021. Retrieved 4 July 2022.
- ↑ "Tokyo Olympics: New Zealand sevens squads named as All Blacks winger Caleb Clarke only makes travelling reserves". NZ Herald. 2 July 2021. Retrieved 3 November 2023.
- ↑ "Sevens stars set to shine over Matariki weekend". allblacks.com. 22 June 2022. Retrieved 4 July 2022.
- ↑ "Rugby Sevens teams named for Commonwealth Games". All Blacks. 29 June 2022. Retrieved 4 July 2022.
- ↑ "Experienced New Zealand sevens squads revealed for Commonwealth Games". Stuff. 29 June 2022. Retrieved 4 July 2022.
- ↑ Knuckey, Brodyn (29 June 2022). "Black Ferns to do double duty as Comm Games Sevens squads named". 1 News. Retrieved 2 October 2023.
- ↑ "Rugby: New Zealand squads named for Rugby World Cup Sevens in Cape Town". NZ Herald. 31 August 2022. Retrieved 30 October 2023.
- ↑ "Sevens players to take part in Premier Rugby Sevens". allblacks.com. 23 May 2023. Retrieved 14 December 2023.
- ↑ "New Zealand Rugby Stars Sign with Premier Rugby Sevens for 2023 Season | Premier Rugby Sevens". www.prsevens.com. Retrieved 14 December 2023.
- ↑ "Instagram". Instagram. Retrieved 14 December 2023.
- ↑ "Instagram". Instagram. Retrieved 14 December 2023.
- ↑ "Instagram". Instagram. Retrieved 14 December 2023.
- ↑ "Record Crowd Sees Headliners and Team Triumph in Austin | Premier Rugby Sevens". www.prsevens.com. Retrieved 14 December 2023.
- ↑ "Instagram". Instagram. Retrieved 14 December 2023.
- ↑ "Instagram". Instagram. Retrieved 14 December 2023.
- ↑ "Pittsburgh has a new Big Ben - Men's Steeltoes win their Home Debut and Qualify for Premier Rugby Sevens Championship | Premier Rugby Sevens". www.prsevens.com. Archived from the original on 22 February 2024. Retrieved 14 December 2023.
- ↑ "Instagram". Instagram. Retrieved 14 December 2023.
- ↑ "Instagram". Instagram. Retrieved 14 December 2023.
- ↑ "Women's Northern Loonies and Men's SoCal Rhinos x Loggerheads win 2023 Premier Rugby Sevens Championships | Premier Rugby Sevens". Prsevens. Retrieved 14 December 2023.
- ↑ "Alev Kelter and Alasio Naduva Win 2023 Premier Rugby Sevens Most Value Player Awards | Premier Rugby Sevens". Prsevens. Retrieved 14 December 2023.
- ↑ Kermeen, Mat (20 June 2024). "Sevens star Sarah Hirini completes 'unbelievable' recovery for Paris Olympics". Stuff. Retrieved 21 June 2024.
- ↑ Burgess, Michael (31 July 2024). "Olympics 2024: New Zealand women's rugby sevens clinch Olympic gold in Paris". NZ Herald. Retrieved 31 July 2024.
- ↑ "Rising stars rewarded with Sevens contracts". NZ Rugby. 24 October 2024. Retrieved 25 February 2025.
- ↑ Rollo, Phillip (31 March 2025). "Jorja Miller leads Black Ferns to Hong Kong Sevens three-peat". Stuff. Retrieved 17 April 2026.
- 1 2 Rollo, Phillip (17 April 2026). "Manaia Nuku returns to Hong Kong a year after tearing ACL in final". Stuff. Retrieved 17 April 2026.
External links
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