In 2022, French rugby absorbed the abrupt end of Virimi Vakatawa’s career. Diagnosed with a heart condition judged to be progressive, the centre was barred from playing in France by the league’s medical committee. Four years on, a man who was one of France’s leading players is about to experience another first: a Fiji cap, in the country where he grew up, against Scotland at Murrayfield on Saturday (3.10pm).

In 2022, French rugby absorbed the abrupt end of Virimi Vakatawa’s career. Diagnosed with a heart condition judged to be progressive, the centre was barred from playing in France by the league’s medical committee. Four years on, a man who was one of France’s leading players is about to experience another first: a Fiji cap, in the country where he grew up, against Scotland at Murrayfield on Saturday (3.10pm).

A decade in sky blue and white

Vakatawa’s story is first of all one of loyalty. Developed and launched at Racing 92, the centre built most of his career there, from his first steps in the late 2000s through to the 2021-22 season. Eleven campaigns, punctuated by full Top 14 seasons: 22 matches in 2018-19, 20 in 2021-22, with the Champions Cup on top during the club’s great years. A powerful three-quarter, elusive with ball in hand, built for a game of movement.

The sevens springboard

Before establishing himself in the fifteen-a-side game, Vakatawa first exploded onto the world sevens circuit. Between 2013 and 2017 he strung together World Series legs in the France 7 shirt, piling up tries tournament after tournament. It was that reservoir of pace and ease in space that would win over Fabien Galthié and the France staff, making him one of the few players to make the switch from sevens to fifteens at the highest level.

A France mainstay, through to the 2019 World Cup

From 2016 to 2022, the former Racing man established himself in the France midfield, alongside Gaël Fickou in particular. He was part of the France squad at the 2019 World Cup in Japan and, when his career was halted, was still a regular starter in Galthié’s project. According to the standard records, he is credited with 32 France caps and more than 120 with France 7 — a rare double international career.

2022: the medical axe

Everything changed in 2022. The LNR’s medical committee ruled that his progressive heart condition was no longer compatible with playing rugby in France. The verdict was final: Vakatawa would not play again in France. The 2022-23 season ends with a chilling total in our data: zero matches. The rugby world thought it was watching a forced retirement.

The English rebound, then the Fijian one

But the Fijian had not had the last word. He set off for England, to Bristol, where he found game time in the Premiership. Then he headed for the Pacific by signing with the Fijian Drua: ten Super Rugby matches this season, a return to regular competition that, against all expectations, reopened the door to international rugby.

Fiji, a first cap at 34

Thanks to the new eligibility rules, Vakatawa was able to join the Fiji squad. On Saturday, six years after his last appearance for France, he will start in midfield against Scotland, partnering Josua Tuisova among others. A first cap in a shirt other than the one bearing the cockerel, for a player who has known every kind of comeback. At 34, the centre completes a circle nobody saw coming.