Emmanuela Jada took the long route to Langford.
The refugee from the Sudanese civil war will make her senior rugby debut for sa国际传媒 next weekend at the USA Sevens in Atlanta, which precedes the sa国际传媒 Sevens on April 16-17 at Westhills Stadium.
鈥淚t was an incredibly long journey getting to this point . . . and a lot of hard work,鈥� 20-year-old Jada said after a workout this weekend at the Pacific Institute for Sport Excellence on the Camosun College Interurban campus.
鈥淚t鈥檚 a huge honour to be chosen for the national team.鈥�
The Canadian women鈥檚 rugby sevens team, which is based in Greater Victoria and practises at Westhills Stadium and PISE, is ranked No. 2 in the world and considered a medal contender for the 2016 Rio Summer Olympics.
Being in this position is not something Jada鈥檚 family could have envisioned for her when they fled their war-ravaged native Sudan as refugees when she was three.
鈥淲e left everything behind 鈥� all our belongings,鈥� Jada said.
Jada and her family lived for four years in Egypt before settling in Guelph, Ont., as refugees. Most of her family members remain in Sudan.
鈥淭here is now the second civil war and still much instability,鈥� Jada said.
Family in Sudan follows her progress as best they can: 鈥淭here is Internet . . . my grandma is very, very happy for me.鈥�
Realistically, Jada is being groomed for the following Olympic quadrennial. She will use this experience to learn and grow as a player.
鈥淭he ultimate goal for me is Tokyo 2020,鈥� said Jada, who has been profiled on the Faces of Tomorrow segment on CBC鈥檚 Road to the Olympics program.
鈥淭here is so much experience on this team. I am going to use my time up here to pick up all the wisdom of the veteran players and listen to their advice.鈥�
Jada flashed her nimbleness and speed during practice sessions at PISE.
鈥淪he has progressed very quickly . . . she is like a sponge and picks things up,鈥� Canadian Olympic team head coach John Tait said.
鈥淛ada has that X factor. As coaches, we look not only for physical attributes, but character attributes, to see what kinds of people they are. Jada鈥檚 experience is so unique and special. She has a sense of being grateful. She is grounded and has perspective other people might not have in life. She is proof that where you come from does not pre-determine where you stay in life.鈥�
Jada, also a XVs player, said she became intrigued by rugby after randomly seeing highlight clips on TV. 鈥淚 went out for my high school trials and realized I was decent at it.鈥�
More than decent enough, it turns out. Jada is poised to become one of the future faces of Canadian women鈥檚 rugby.
