Faizel Patel, Radio Islam News, 2015-11-01
Muslim All Blacks centre Sonny Bill Williams was awarded a second World Cup winner’s medal having given away his previous gold medal to young boy moments after Saturday’s final ended.
Williams, gave his Rugby World Cup gold medal to 14-year-old Charlie Lines after a security guard wrestled him to the ground.
At the time of the event, the player explained the reasoning behind his instinctive reaction: “A young fella snuck onto the field somehow but when he was coming up to give me a hug, he got smoked by a security guard, full-on tackled him.
“The other fella was a big man so he was lucky he didn’t break his ribs or something. I think the moment got the better of him but he was just so excited to get onto the field with the All Blacks. I just thought I’d make it a night to remember for him.”
Williams’ response on Twitter was: “For a kid 2 have that will and take that risk, you deserve a medal.”
“Rather than have the medal hanging up at home, it’s going to hanging around that young fella’s neck. He can tell that story for a long time to come,” Williams said.
The gesture led to global headlines and the young fan even offered to give the medal back.
“The bonds that we have as brothers in the changing room are the most important thing,” added Williams, insisting he wouldn’t regret the gesture.
“The medal represents the win, but going in and seeing the smiles on the boy’s faces, knowing that we’ve accomplished something no other All Blacks team has done, is pretty special,” Williams added.
The gesture was shared several times on Facebook pages, including that of Mufti Menk saying: “great gesture by our brother,” winning Williams praise on the social website.
Born in 1985, Williams reverted to Islam in 2008 after attending prayer services at a Sydney mosque. The All Blacks superstar is the first Muslim to play for the All Blacks rugby team.
The south-pacific island country of New Zealand is home to 36,000 Muslims, according to the 2006 census.
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