Maka Unufe
Full name | Kisi Keomaka Unufe | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Date of birth | September 28, 1991 | (age 33)||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Place of birth | Provo, Utah | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Height | 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Weight | 210 lb (95 kg)[1] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Rugby union career | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Kisi Keomaka "Maka" Unufe (born September 28, 1991) is an American rugby union player who plays for the United States national rugby sevens team.[2] Unufe is from Provo, Utah, United States.[3]
Unufe previously played American football as a wide receiver at Provo High School. Unufe starred for the Utah Warriors at the Club 7s Nationals in August 2011, earning a nomination to the All-Tournament team.[4] He was then selected to play at the National All-Star Championships.[5]
U.S. national rugby sevens team
Although only 19 years old at the time, Unufe made his international debut with the United States national team playing as a wing in the 2011 Pan American games against Chile in October 2011, scoring a try in his first game. He was the team's top try scorer at the Pan Am games with 5 tries, helping the U.S. national team win a Bronze medal.[6] Following the tournament, U.S. national team head coach Al Caravelli described Unufe as "phenomenal" and "a star in the making."[7] In recognition of Unufe's rapid rise, Rugby Mag named Unufe the 2011 Men's Breakout Player of the Year,[6] and This Is American Rugby named Unufe the 2011 Youth Player of the Year.[5] Unufe made his Sevens World Series debut at the 2012 Wellington Sevens.[8]
With the arrival of speedsters Carlin Isles and Perry Baker, Unufe was moved to center.[1] Unufe was named to World Rugby's Dream Team for the 2015 Wellington Sevens tournament, due to his "strong defensive plays and hard runs."[9] Unufe played for the U.S. at the 2016 Summer Olympics, where the U.S. finished in ninth place. Unufe was a key piece of the U.S. comeback at the 2017 USA Sevens from a 0–19 deficit against Argentina to win 21–19.[10] Unufe missed the entire 2018–19 season due to a suspension for a banned substance that had been contained in a diet supplement he had taken.
See also
References
- ^ a b "INJURIES BREED OPPORTUNITY AS EAGLES LIMP TO NEW ZEALAND", Rugby Today, Pat Clifton, January 30, 2018.
- ^ "Maka Unufe - Men's Sevens". USA Rugby. Retrieved 11 March 2017.
- ^ Donaldson, Amy (August 9, 2016). "Provo native Maka Unufe went from high school dropout to Olympian inspired by his family". Deseret News. Retrieved 11 March 2017.
- ^ [1]
- ^ a b "TIAR Awards: Youth Player of the Year, Maka Unufe". This Is American Rugby. 2011-12-16. Retrieved 2016-07-27.
- ^ a b [2]
- ^ [3]
- ^ [4]
- ^ "Eagles Learn Vegas Draw, Unufe Makes Dream Team". This Is American Rugby. 2015-02-07. Retrieved 2016-07-27.
- ^ "Vegas 7s Men: Comeback Propels Eagles Into Semi-finals, This Is American Rugby, March 4, 2017.
External links
- Maka Unufe at Olympics at Sports-Reference.com (archived)
- 1991 births
- Living people
- American rugby union players
- Sportspeople from Provo, Utah
- United States international rugby sevens players
- Olympic rugby sevens players of the United States
- Rugby sevens players at the 2016 Summer Olympics
- Pan American Games medalists in rugby sevens
- Pan American Games bronze medalists for the United States
- Rugby sevens players at the 2011 Pan American Games