As one on-line poster joked in 2016, “Fun reality: #Tonga makes use of over 90% of the world’s oil to maintain their flag bearers at most glisten.”

But it wasn’t simply Tafatofua’s physique oil that grabbed the world’s consideration—it was additionally his spectacular washboard abs. In reality, his physique grew to become such an enigma that he later unpacked how he maintains it. 

“It’s not just genetic, it’s how I work and approach life,” he informed Cosmopolitan in 2018. “I train whenever I can, so if I’m cooking a meal on the stove and I’m waiting for the toast to pop up, I get 40 pushups in there. I wait for the coffee to brew, that’s 3 minutes, and I get another 40 pushups. Before breakfast is even cooked, I’m on 200 pushups.”

Although Tafatofua gained’t be grabbing consideration for his nation this yr, he was completely satisfied he was capable of achieve recognition for the island by way of his Opening Ceremonies schtick. 

“It’s all funny for me,” Tafatofua added. “The goal isn’t to be this symbol of masculinity, because that’s so surface level. But if that allows me to get a message across to people, then I want to get a message across to people. A spoonful of sugar helps the medicine go down, you know?”

While Tafatofua was lacking from the 2024 Opening Ceremony, preserve studying to see all of the highlights.