Olympic rugby dream starts in Hangzhou for Hong Kong’s Shanghai-raised Mba Oyana
Having got a Hong Kong passport in hope of playing at the Games, Julia Mibuy Mba Oyana takes another step forward this weekend
Only nine years after she was inspired by her brother to begin playing rugby, Julia Mibuy Mba Oyana has set her sights on being a key part of Hong Kong’s Olympics quest.
Her journey will resume this weekend when she returns to Hong Kong colours for the first leg of the Asia Rugby Sevens Series in Hangzhou.
Hong Kong-born Mba Oyana spent the first 10 years of her life in Hangzhou’s neighbour, Shanghai. Coming back to Hong Kong, her sporting passions were handball and track running.
But when her older brother, Juan Esono, now a Hong Kong sevens player, “dragged me along” to one of his training sessions, Mba Oyana’s interest was piqued.
“I thought rugby was his thing … but I saw it and wanted to run around with the ball and have fun on the pitch,” she said.
“He was the inspiration behind why I played. I started in school, then had lots of opportunities and knew it was the sport I wanted to play.”