Rugby – impressive late turn in World Rugby elections when voting is down to one man

The fate of the next World Rugby President is believed to be in the hands of Fiji’s Prime Minister Frank Bainimarama.

With Six Nations and Sanzaar countries locked in a classic North vs. South showdown over the future direction of the global game, the Herald has learned that a small nation vote in the South Pacific could change the World Rugby Bill elections Beaumont or Agustin Pichot. .

It is understood that the vote on Sunday, by email, is so closed.

Fiji’s influence appears clearly after being forced to withdraw his nomination, Francis Kean, from the all-powerful World Rugby executive committee after his murder conviction, allegations of homophobia while he was head of the Fiji prison service, among other frightening claims , were uncovered in recent days.

The scandal exposed Kean’s position at the World Rugby Council since May 2019, as an embarrassment to the sport that now threatens to derail the Beaumont President’s campaign.

In confirming Kean’s withdrawal, World Rugby said: “While it is important to emphasize that any complaint must be validated, after dialogue with World Rugby, the Fiji Rugby Union acknowledges the seriousness of the complaints and the need for an investigation. thoroughly, and that it is in the best interest of the sport that Mr. Kean withdraw from the Council and withdraw his candidacy for the Executive Committee. “

Kean, Bainimarama’s brother-in-law, who resigns immediately after immense public scrutiny carries significant ramifications in Fiji’s vote for the president of World Rugby.

Kean’s seat on the World Rugby Council, a broader governing group with minimal influence, will be filled by Fiji Rugby Union Executive President John O’Connor.

However, Kean cannot be replaced on the World Rugby executive committee, effectively on the global game board, as the deadline for nominations has passed.

Kean’s withdrawal allows the remaining seven nominations for the executive committee to proceed without the need for a vote, depriving Fiji of any genuine influence on the future of the game.

Fiji seconded Beaumont’s nomination for president, but Kean’s withdrawal dramatically alters the context of his vote.

Your vote for Beaumont or Pichot may be Fiji’s only chance to play its only card in the next four-year cycle.

Kean’s nomination for the executive committee was seconded by French rugby president Bernard Laporte, who is running alongside Beaumont for the post of vice president.

But with Kean now out of the picture and the executive committee seat gone with him, Fiji has no obligation and possibly little to gain by supporting Beaumont’s reinstatement.

This is where Fiji Prime Minster Bainimarama, also president of the Fiji Rugby Union, comes into play.

Bainimarama first took office in Fiji through a military coup in 2006, prompting the governments of New Zealand and Australia to sanction him and other top officials.

Fourteen years later, Bainimarama won two elections and normalized international relations.

With the vote for World Rugby president on the razor’s edge, Bainimarama now faces a monumental decision that could shape the future of global gaming.

His choice is to stay with Beaumont and the established powers of northern rugby who, up to this point, have succeeded in protectionism and firm resistance to change, or Pichot’s vision for a global game that would elevate Fiji to world-class competition. level.

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The Herald understands that former Argentine captain Pichot has garnered enough support from other previously undecided tier two nations to recoup much of Sanzaar’s six-vote deficit against Six Nations unions.

Ultimately, that leaves Bainimarama in a position of power, and there is hope among Sanzaar that he will make a late U-turn to support his vision for change.

Siding with the north could send Fiji to fight largely for family crumbs for the four years after requests for a good chunk of test proceeds in northern print-money locations were repeatedly rejected.

At Pichot, however, Fiji’s path to a place fully integrated into southern hemisphere rugby, and with it a more equitable future, can finally be crystallized.

Samoan Prime Minister Tuila’epa Sa’ilele Malielegaoi, who, like Bainimarama, heads the country’s rugby union, is believed to have promised Beaumont his vote at last year’s World Cup.

In return, Beaumont has vowed to review the eligibility changes that would allow high-profile players with inheritance in the Pacific Islands to shift allegiance to those nations after being captured by people like All Blacks and England.

The question now is how Bainimarama will cast Fiji’s deciding vote.