Sport Migration and Sociocultural Transformation: The Case of Fijian Rugby Union Players in Japan

Abstract

Since the 1990s several Fijians have entered rugby union competitions in Japan, attracted predominantly by the financial incentives offered by large corporations who dominate Japanese rugby. In Japan, Fijians face numerous economic, demographic and sociocultural experiences that challenge the vaka i taukei (the 'traditional' Fijian way of life). Migration thus becomes a lens through which Fijians review their identity and place in the world. This paper discusses the sociocultural complexities that underpin critical migrant perspectives on the communal patterns that dominate the Fijian way of life. Based on research conducted in Fiji and Japan, this contribution provides an anthropological perspective on transnational Pacific Islander rugby mobility. It pays particular attention to aspects of sociocultural transformation -a theme previously neglected in scholarship on Pacific Islanders in professional rugby.

Community Life and Discourses among Fiji Islanders in Kantō, Japan

“…I was occasionally told that remittances are restricted to close kin such as parents, spouses, and children, seldom provided to siblings and the extended family, and only rarely directed towards wider communities (cf. Schieder and Presterudstuen 2014, 1368-1369. Focusing on Indo-Fijians in Australia, Voigt-Graf (2005 has argued that kinship is nurtured because it is a requirement for their transnational social networks.…”

“…Others are scouted in Fiji, Australia, New Zealand, or Europe whilst in the prime of their careers and a few are recruited after graduating from private Japanese universities (cf. Schieder and Presterudstuen 2014).…”

“…Schieder and Presterudstuen have argued elsewhere that rugby union players from Fiji in Japan critically engage with the socio-economic context that shapes the communal Fijian way of life (vaka i taukei). The athletes particularly criticise 'the extensive amount of social borrowing as well as financial and material support which the individual has to offer as obligated service according to the vaka i taukei' (Schieder andPresterudstuen 2014, 1370).…”

Exploring the complexities of community attitudes towards women’s rugby: Multiplicity, continuity and change in Fiji’s hegemonic rugby discourse

“…The present study seeks to contribute to filling this lacuna in the literature with exploratory insights into how women’s rugby in Fiji is perceived by young (defined here as 16–35-year-old) women who do not play rugby but are physically active (i.e., regularly exercise and/or play one or more sports – henceforth ‘athletic young women’) and those who exercise influence over these women’s sport-related decision-making (e.g., parents, siblings and teachers; henceforth ‘gatekeepers’). While there is a growing body of literature on men’s rugby in Fiji (Kanemasu and Molnar, 2013a, 2013b, 2013c, 2014; Osborne-Finekaso, 2016; Presterudstuen, 2010; Schieder and Presterudstuen, 2014), few researchers other than Kanemasu and Molnar (2013c, 2015) have studied Fijian women’s participation in the game, and no empirical study, to our knowledge, has focused on the voices of community members whose support and interest is critical to facilitating Fijian women’s greater access to the game. 1 In short, we aim to provide a critical perspective on women’s participation in rugby beyond the playing field by exploring community attitudes.…”

Contradictions and Complexities—Current Perspectives on Pacific Islander Mobilities

“…Existing literature on transnational indigenous Fijians includes an anthropological study on the livelihoods of long-term and undocumented migrants in a rural Australian town (Schubert 2009), as well as an ethnographically informed paper about Japan-based Fijian rugby players' perceptions of the Fijian way of life (Schieder and Presterudstuen 2014). Scholars from neighbouring disciplines have worked on the value and function of remittances for indigenous Fijians in Sydney (Stanwix and Connell 1995), the social and cultural capital underpinning migration networks of indigenous Fijians in California (Scott 2003) and the challenges faced by indigenous Fijians in New Zealand who simultaneously try to maintain their cultural heritage and to adapt to their diasporic setting (Vunidolo 2006 Mohanty and Voigt-Graf argue that from the 1990s onwards, Fijian emigration has become more diversified.…”