Why Jonah Lomu came to represent so much more than sporting dominance to every New Zealander

The Evening Standard's New Zealand-born Jason Collie gives a personal tribute to the iconic rugby superstar
Jason Collie18 November 2015

It may jar given the events in Paris, but the death of Jonah Lomu at the age of 40 has devastated almost every single New Zealander today.

Whilst the All Blacks loom large over New Zealand life, Jonah holds a place higher in the nation’s hearts because of the pride he instilled with his rags to riches rise, the health battles he has faced and just because he appeared to be a gentle and decent man.

That his death has happened less than three weeks after Richie McCaw lifted the Rugby World Cup makes it all the more shocking.

McCaw may be hailed as our greatest All Black but Jonah was our best known, the first and arguably only true global rugby superstar.

To give it an English perspective, if McCaw is our Bobby Moore then Jonah is a mix of Sir Bobby Charlton and Gazza – someone the nation took to their hearts from the first.

That is not to say Jonah was a saint. He made his missteps along the way but always his humble and unassuming persona meant those were forgiven. He didn’t invite his mother to his first wedding but a teary apology on national TV melted even the most critical of hearts.

He was New Zealand’s youngest All Black at 19 years and 45 days but his was not a story of a sporting progidy groomed for stardom from early childhood.

He came from the humblest of beginnings, sent away to Tonga by his family as a toddler and, when he returned, endured a horrific relationship with his abusive father.

In Pictures: Jonah Lomu

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Jonah could have ended up like so many other young Maori and Pacific Islanders on the streets of South Auckland but for the insistence of his mother pushing him to the Methodist Wesley College and the discipline instilled there.

That’s what set him on the path to international stardom, but Jonah never forgot where he came from and that was key in his appeal.

Like any country we cling to our idols who make a true mark on the world. But more importantly Jonah was one of us – a boy from the rougher end of Auckland known in almost every corner of the globe who faced his crippling kidney condition with fortitude.

And whilst New Zealand is a country in mourning today, the global reaction will come as a comfort because it shows how revered he was overseas.

Legend: Jonah Lomu with Jason Collie and sons Dylan, left, and Alex. Picture: Stewart Turkington

I was lucky enough to take my two sons, Dylan and Alex, to meet him in August when he toured with the Rugby World Cup.

They had little idea of who he was but were immediately struck by his sheer presence and that hundreds had queued up on a Monday morning at a non-descript commercial estate in Reading to see this man.

Interactive graphic: Jonah Lomu's vital statistics

His passing at no age at all is a tragedy for rugby and a tragedy for New Zealand.

But let us not forget the two sons he leaves behind, Brayley and Dhyreille, six and five respectively.

RIP Jonah. And thank you.

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