Jonah Lomu
Wednesday November 18, 2015
And yet more tragic news...one of New Zealand's greatest rugby icons, Jonah Lomu, passed away today from cardiac arrest. He had been battling kidney problems for much of the past decade, but as of late, seemed on top of it. As the tributes flowed from across the world - such was his impact on global rugby - they recounted stories about his character and his athleticism. He was more than a hero, and he will go down in the books as a rugby legend.
As for myself, I have my own Jonah Lomu story to share. Back in the days when we were Sidhe and still working on console games, Jonah Lomu had visited the office to have a look at progress on Rugby Challenge. Though it was the All Blacks Rugby Challenge in New Zealand and the Wallabies Rugby Challenge in Australia, the rest of the world knew it as Jonah Lomu Rugby Challenge. He came in to give the team some pointers and to do an interview. Luke, the associate producer on the project, convinced me to get a photo of Jonah with my glasses on. Nervously, I approached this 6' 6" giant, introduced myself, shook his hand, bumbled out some words, and then asked if I could take a quick picture of him with my glasses on.
I bumbled out more words of thanks and shook his hand again. I was giddy and internally screaming like a little schoolgirl. He was awesome. I'll never forget that. Rest in peace.
Posted by Jeremy at 10:10am on Wednesday November 18, 2015 :: 0 comments :: 