Hong Kong Sevens: how being caned turned Kenyan sporting royal into rugby star
Samuel Asati describes unlikely introduction to rugby, as he aims to help establish Kenya among game’s best
As a descendant of Kenyan running royalty, Samuel Asati was perhaps always destined to compete in elite sporting circles.
However, until the rugby sevens star received the cane for “skiving school” to play football, Asati – whose grandfather Charles Asati won 4x400 metres Olympic gold in 1972 – thought his future was in the round-ball game.
Keen to continue dodging lessons at his Genesis Academy school back in 2012, Asati responded to being caught playing hookey by joining the rugby team, which trained during classroom hours.
“I discovered that a better way to get out of school was through the rugby team,” Asati told the Post.
“I saw rugby suited me and got more involved. I loved the running element, and fell in love with the sport.”
Concerned his parents would not approve of him playing rugby, Asati hid his new passion for around one year, until he had to obtain a passport for a tour to South Africa. They had assumed the bruises he acquired on the field were the result of playground fights.