Manaé Feleu

Manaé Feleu (born 3 February 2000) is a French rugby union player who plays for FC Grenoble Amazones and the France women's national rugby union team.[1] She competed at the delayed 2021 Rugby World Cup.

Personal life

Born in Mâcon,[2] she grew up on the Futuna Islands, to Valérie and Nisie. She has three siblings: Niue, Teani Feleu, and Asia. Her parents were the only physical education teachers on her island and they introduced rugby into the school and set up clubs to play matches. From the age of 14 she studied in Hawke's Bay, New Zealand for three years at Woodford House.[1][3]

Feleu moved to Grenoble with her sister Teani in 2020 to study medicine.[4] She combines training to become a surgeon with rugby training.[5][6]

Rugby career

Feleu made her international debut for France against England in Grenoble on 14 November 2020 before being selected again a year later.[7][4] She was named in France's team for the delayed 2021 Rugby World Cup in New Zealand.[8][9] She featured in the games against South Africa and Fiji at the World Cup.[10][11]

Feleu was named in France's squad for the 2023 Women's Six Nations Championship.[12][13]

She captained the side at the 2024 tournament and scored her first try for the nation during the match against Wales.[14][2] She made the team again for the 2025 Six Nations Championship.[15]

References

  1. ^ a b "French player thrilled to face schoolmate, now Black Fern in WC semis". 1 News. 2 November 2022. Retrieved 10 November 2022.
  2. ^ a b Hodgson, Ramsay. "Sisters who grew up on tiny Pacific island aiming to deliver France's first Grand Slam since 2018". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 25 April 2024.
  3. ^ "Top student started with little English". The New Zealand Herald. 14 April 2016. Retrieved 10 November 2022.
  4. ^ a b "Sport news in brief for November 3". RNZ. 3 November 2022. Retrieved 10 November 2022.
  5. ^ "The double ascent of Manaé Feleu". gre-mag.fr.
  6. ^ "Maanae Feleu, la plus néo-zélandaise des Bleues". francebleu.fr.
  7. ^ "Manaé Feleu recalled to Les Bleues". ledauphine.com.
  8. ^ Shepard, Kit (15 October 2022). "France Women's Rugby World Cup Squad 2022 – France 7-13 England". Rugby World. Retrieved 15 October 2022.
  9. ^ Eddison, Paul (30 September 2022). "World Cup Lowdown: France". TikTok Women’s Six Nations. Retrieved 15 October 2022.
  10. ^ "France end Fiji's World Cup hopes, remain on track for NZ semi". The New Zealand Herald. 22 October 2022. Retrieved 10 November 2022.
  11. ^ Biudole, Noa (22 October 2022). "France proves too strong for Fijiana". fijilive.com. Retrieved 10 November 2022.
  12. ^ Eddison, Paul (7 March 2023). "France name squad for TikTok Women's Six Nations". TikTok Women’s Six Nations. Retrieved 23 April 2023.
  13. ^ Rendell, Sarah (27 April 2023). "France Women's Six Nations Squad – Team to face England". Rugby World. Retrieved 28 April 2023.
  14. ^ "Two Polynesian-Burgundy sisters, who play together at club level, could well line up together for the first time in a Test match this year". Sixnationsrugby. 12 March 2024. Retrieved 24 April 2024.
  15. ^ "XV de France féminin : Le groupe pour le Tournoi des Six Nations 2025" [France Women's XV: The group for the 2025 Six Nations Tournament]. French Rugby Federation (in French). 7 March 2025. Archived from the original on 7 March 2025. Retrieved 7 March 2025.