A pair of South African adventure cyclists are on the final leg of their 16,500km journey to deliver the match whistle that will kick off the Women's Rugby World Cup.
While Ron Rutland and Adam Nunn are self-declared rugby buffs, the main aim of their odyssey is to raise fundsfor the Rugby World Cup's official charity, ChildFund Rugby.
Rutland and Nunn began their epic bike packing journey on March 14 outside Ajinomoto Stadium in Tokyo, Japan - the country that hosted the 2019 Rugby World Cup.
Since then the duo have spent 209 days pedalling their way through 11 countries with their sights firmly set on today's final stop at Eden Park.
There, the pair will help make history by delivering their precious cargo to New Zealand's Maggie Cogger-Orr, who is the first female Rugby World Cup referee to receive the whistle.
"It was one of the most moving experiences we've had on the journey," Rutland said.
Quite the honour given the men had felt like they had Asia and Southeast Asia to themselves as they cruised through, at a time when tourism had been hammered by Covid.
Rutland and Nunn's stop in Whangārei included a spirited reunion with the two Japanese players who had given them the whistle outside the Tokyo stadium at their journey's start.
"They were much more excited to see the whistle than us," Rutland joked.
Adam Nunn, left, and Ron Rutland during their reunion with the two Japanese rugby players who first gave them the whistle in Tokyo. Photo / Supplied
The friends' path to this year's Rugby World Cup - which they admitted they did no training for - took them 400km along the "incredible" Vietnamese coastline, through Cambodia, and along the length of Thailand, starting with the east coast before making a beeline to catch a local rugby tournament in Phuket.
"It was something cool for us as rugby fans to visit," Nunn said.
Thailand was also "one of the most special countries" to cycle in, he added.
The next stop was Malaysia, then Singapore, Australia, and Fiji, before finally wheeling into Invercargill to start Rutland and Nunn's New Zealand adventure.
At some points on the trip, they had to fly between destinations when land border crossings weren't possible due to Covid restrictions.
Despite all bikes, flights, packing and unpacking, never once did they lose track of the whistle, which, they said, had been through "thousands of pairs of hands".
"World Rugby suggested we take the match whistle. That was a lot of added responsibility but an added purpose," Nunn said.
They kept the whistle close at all times, tucked safely away with their passports.
Rutland described their resolution to ensure no one but Cogger-Orr would blow the whistle.
"Usually an adult would pick it up and we're like argh, give me that, it's not for you," he laughed.
The precious cargo. Photo / Tania Whyte
The long-haul cycle trip between Rugby World Cup destinations is Rutland's third.
"In 2013 I was having a bit of a mid-life crisis and I'd always had a dream of doing a big adventure... I'd never done cycling or spent more than two nights in a tent."
But he sold everything at home in Cape Town and headed to London where the 2015 Rugby World Cup was about to take place.
"It really changed my life," Rutland said.
So four years later when he had the opportunity to do it all over again - this time London to Tokyo with then charity worker James Owens and to raise the profile of ChildFund - it was a no-brainer.
Rutland and Nunn were pumped to revisit the region to watch some rugby but also check out the Bay of Islands which they said had been recommended for its "good cycling".
The pair encouraged everyone to get along and make the most of New Zealand hosting such a prestigious event that will not come back around for years to come.
To donate $3 to ChildFund, text RUGBY to 2474. Money raised will go towards providing opportunities for vulnerable children and youth to play the sport.
