Nadolo calls out casual racism over new Leicester signing

Leicester Tigers winger Nemani Nadolo has called out the casual racism of some fans after his side announced the signing of Kini Murimurivalu on Monday. Following the announcement on social media, there were comments made by some relating to the pronunciation of the Fijian full-back’s name that his compatriot Nadolo took umbrage at.

He shared a screenshot on Twitter of the comments made and shared this message: “A comment made on the signing of my mate Kini Murimurivalu by one of the supporters... sorry but I don’t stand for this s***... I’ll let head office know tomorrow to change my name to Bob to make it easier for some!”

Nadolo addressed the matter again on Tuesday, saying he bore no grudges but hoped “we can all respect each other whether it’s our name, race or religion”. 

The irony in this situation has been noted on Twitter, as the phonetically spelt Murimurivalu actually makes more sense than the word Leicester in terms of pronunciation. Nonetheless, Nadolo hopes to move on after this incident. 

Anyone who claims the phonetically-spelt “Murimurivalu” is hard but “Leicester” is easy isn’t about the pronunciation.

— Tim O'Connor (@timoconnorbl) July 21, 2020

Murimurivalu arrived at Welford Road after eight years with La Rochelle in the Top 14. He was one of five signings unveiled on Monday alongside Luke Wallace, Kobus van Wyk, Guy Porter and Matias Moroni. 

The Fijian will help fill the void left by Telusa Veainu, who left Leicester at the beginning of the month following a contract dispute. Jonny May, Jonah Holmes and Adam Thompstone had already moved on during rugby’s suspension due to the Covid-19 pandemic, leaving the Tigers thin on the ground in the back three. 

Nadolo is a fellow new signing at Welford Road, although that was announced months ago. He will team up with Murimurivalu for the first time since June 2018, having retired from Test rugby more than a year before the 2019 World Cup in Japan.