COVID-stricken Fiji celebrates rugby win

SUVA — Overjoyed Fijians have brushed aside a strict virus curfew and poured onto the streets of Suva to celebrate Olympic rugby sevens gold in an explosion of song, dance and fireworks.

Children cheered, car horns honked and one older lady's celebratory twerk went viral, after the Pacific nation's rugby heroes vanquished New Zealand 27-12 late on Wednesday to retain the title.

Fijians are obsessed with rugby.

When the team won in Rio de Janeiro in 2016 — bagging the country's first Olympic medal of any hue — the celebrations included a national holiday and a commemorative FIJ$7 note (worth 3.36 US dollars) issued by the central bank.

During each match of this campaign, every home with a television tuned in, and living rooms were often packed with neighbors who did not have a TV.

A 6 pm curfew is currently in place, aimed at arresting the coronavirus outbreak which erupted in April and has claimed 218 lives with more than 19,000 active cases in isolation.

But when the final whistle blew in Tokyo Stadium and the team ditched stuffy Olympic protocol to belt out a traditional polyphonic song from the podium, a nation erupted.

More than three hours after the curfew began families poured from the houses to dance and sing, banging pots and pans and setting off fireworks. (AFP)