Lesley Vainikolo

Lesley Vainikolo, Tongan rugby player

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Born: May 4, 1979
Age in 2026: 47
Zodiac sign: Taurus
Birth year: 1979

About Lesley Vainikolo

Lesley Paea 'I'muli Vainikolo (born 4 May 1979) is a former professional rugby league and rugby union footballer. A dual code international, he has played for the New Zealand Kiwis in rugby league and England in rugby union. He began his career playing rugby league in Australia for the Canberra Raiders of the National Rugby League and later in England for the Bradford Bulls of Super League. He then moved to English rugby union club Gloucester. In both codes, he has usually played as a wing. == Early life and career == Vainikolo was born on 4 May 1979 in Nukuʻalofa, Tonga. His family uprooted to Mangere, Auckland in late 1986. He grew up in South Auckland, New Zealand playing rugby union but switched to rugby league as he explains, "I first got into rugby league when I was 11. One of my mates got me into it. His team were short on numbers and my mate asked if I wanted to play.

Biography source: Wikipedia. The profile adds birthday-specific historical context from the Celebs Birthday Today editorial database.

Career and life highlights

Vainkolo attended De La Salle College, Mangere East and holds the school's 100m record of 10.90s.
Having won Super League VIII, Bradford played against 2003 NRL Premiers, the Penrith Panthers in the 2004 World Club Challenge.

The world when Lesley Vainikolo was born

Lesley Vainikolo was born in 1979. The year snapshot below places that birthday in its cultural and historical setting: the music and films people were following, the headlines shaping public life, and the everyday prices families encountered.

Culture in 1979

#1 song"My Sharona" – The Knack
Top movieKramer vs. Kramer
Top TV showLaverne & Shirley
Best-selling bookThe Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy – Douglas Adams

Headlines and milestones

Major sports moment"Miracle on Ice" (1980 — actually)
Top headlineIran hostage crisis begins
Technology milestoneSony Walkman released — portable music goes mainstream
Defining fadSony Walkman — portable music revolution
Notable inventionSony Walkman
World population4.38 billion

United States snapshot

U.S. leaderJimmy Carter
Sports championPittsburgh Pirates (World Series)
Also wonSeattle SuperSonics (NBA)
U.S. population225.1M

1979 versus 2026

These figures put everyday life in Lesley Vainikolo's birth year beside the site's latest United States snapshot.

Measure	1979	2026
Gas	$0.86	$3.45/gal
Average home	$62,900	$435,000
Average income	$19,554	$67,500
Minimum wage	$2.90	$7.25/hr (federal)
Movie ticket	$2.51	$11.95
Postage stamp	$0.15	$0.73
Population	225.1M	341 million

Sources and editorial standards

This profile combines a biographical source with structured birthday and historical context. Sources recorded for this profile: Wikipedia, Rugby League Project, It's Rugby. See our editorial policy for sourcing, corrections, and review standards.

Read the source biography on Wikipedia. Wikipedia text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License.