It was first reported by Swaib Raul Kanyike in The Monitor that speedster Emilly Lekuru has signed a professional contract with a rugby club in Japan.
Lekuru leaves Black Pearls to join Hokkaido Barbarians Diana on a four-month deal, becoming the first Ugandan woman to go pro in rugby.
She will feature in the Taiyo Seimei Women’s 7s Series alongside and against a host of international superstars like Jazmin Felix Hotham, Sarah Hirini and Thalia Costa, plus home-based Japanese players on the SVNS World Series.
“Those are big names but I am on a mission to work hard, get my time and play. I want to inspire so many girls and women players back home,” Lekuru said to Kanyike.
Founded in 2014, the Taiyo Seimei Women’s 7s Series is the major domestic women’s 7s tournament in Japan. The 2025 edition will be played in an expanded format featuring twelve core teams over four rounds. It will run from May 5-6 with a Challenger Tournament until the Grand Final on August 17.
Schedule for 2025 Taiyo Seimei Women’s 7s Series:
• Challenger Tournament, May 5-6, JAPAN BASE, Fukuoka.
• Round One, June 21-22, Kumagaya Rugby Stadium, Kumagaya.
• Round Two, July 20-21, Mikuni World Stadium, Kitakyushu.
• Round Three, August 2-3, Hanazono Rugby Stadium, Higashi-Osaka.
• Grand Final, August 17, Daiwa House Premist Dome, Sapporo.
Lekuru’s Hokkaido Barbarians Diana were promoted to the series last year and is now a core team. The other core teams are Pearls, Tokyo Sankyu Phoenix Rugby Club, Yokohama TKM, Nippon Sports Science University Women’s Rugby Club, Nanairo Prism Fukuoka, Arukas Queen Kumagaya Women’s RFC, JSDF Physical Training School, Otemon Gakuin Women’s Rugby Club Venus, Challenge Team, Yokogawa Musashino Artemi-Stars and defending champions Nagato Blue Angels.
[Source: RugbyAsia247]
Where Lekuru Leaves Black Pearls
Black Pearls are current table leaders in the Uganda Women’s Rugby Premiership with a maximum 45 points from nine matches played.
Lekuru, one of the club’s co-captains, was top scorer with forty-six tries to her name.
By the time Lekuru returns, if she returns, Black Pearls will have concluded the premiership and began the national 7s series.
Emilly Lekuru has featured for the Uganda Lady Rugby Cranes (five caps) and toured with the 7s national team in the past.
