A first look at the diminutive Sri Lanka rugby Sevens exponent could be misleading. But watch Joseph Kevin Dixon on the field and he is as good as any other top shelf player or may be even better than some of the players to hit the turf for Sri Lanka on the international scene.
The dusky back division player was one of the household names playing for St. Peter’s College in the schools rugby arena and was one of the players everyone wanted to see.
Give him the slightest opening and Dixon will be off in a flash brushing down several defenders heading for the try-line. And without him the Peterite line-up was not complete for such was his importance to the team.
Dixon wore the Sri Lanka youth jersey as a schoolboy and went on to captain the senior Sri Lanka Sevens team.
“I am humble in whatever I have achieved. I have gained from every experience and opportunity that was thrown at me. So I have not lost anything,” Dixon, who describes himself as a leader and worker, told the Sunday Observer in an interview.
Excerpts of the interview:
Q: Describe yourself in one word?
Ambitious
Q: Any words or phrases you overuse?
God Bless and quite a few Sinhala slang words that I can’t mention now
Q: What is your most marked characteristic?
Leader and hard worker
Q: If you could edit your past, what would you change?
Nothing as such. Everything that has happened in my life has been for a good reason I believe. I have always been the person to gain from every experience and opportunity life has thrown at me and so I have not lost anything. It’s all God’s plan and I have only learnt through everything I have been through
Q: What is the most important thing in your life?
My family
Q: Who has influenced you the most?
At every stage of my life, there has always been someone who has positively motivated and influenced me. That being said, who I am today is all because of my brother, Ishara and my family
Q: Are you fashionable?
Sadly no. My brother has a good fashion sense so he styles me whenever I go out and I have to dress nice. He is pretty much like my own personal stylist.
Q: If you had access to a time machine what would you change?
Listening to my brother Ishara much earlier on and showing interest to learn and start the business (gym fitness trade)
Q: What motivates you in your life?
It’s surely my family and for me, my family is the most united, Happy, fun-loving and peaceful place in the world. They are what keeps me going and motivate me because at the end of the day I am doing everything for their happiness and do not want to let them down
Q: If you could choose any career right now, what would it be?
Playing rugby and being an entrepreneur are what I am good at. So I won’t dare change that, it would be stupid of me to choose any other career. I am really happy with what I am doing right now which is the business and would like to grow on that.
Q: What forms of music do you listen to?
All forms of music. I am not picky in that sense but of late I have been listening to more Tamil love songs
Q: What’s the best thing you would like to hear from someone?
So far, I have heard everyone call me one of the best rugby players in the country and that I am a rugby star which I am very grateful and humble about. Now moving forward, I want to hear that I am one of the greatest businessmen in the country and am working towards making that a reality
Q. What made you choose sports?
My brother started playing rugby first and so I used to watch him play and just follow him. I was also really interested in the game as well
Q. Thus far what was your most unforgettable sporting moments?
There are so many but if I have to pick my top three moments it would be; winning the 2016 Asian Rugby Sevens for the first time in Sri Lankan history, captaining Sri Lanka back-to-back for two years because nobody else was given such a chance before and captaining St. Peter’s College
Q. What’s your best school sporting achievement?
It would have to be becoming the leading try-scorer in the 2014 Schools Rugby League and winning the All Island 7s Cup in 2015
Q: What is your idea of happiness?
My family. Everything I have done so far and am doing now is ultimately for them, to give them a happy and peaceful life. So, seeing my loved ones happy is what makes me the happiest and that is my idea of happiness
Q: What is the trait you most deplore in others?
When someone is being dishonest because that leads to a loss of trust and I hate when that happens
Q: What has been your biggest disappointment?
I don’t have any disappointments. I strongly believe that everything happens for a reason and I have always learnt through my experiences and mistakes to do better the next time. Everything happens to God’s plan and I know He has a plan for me. I would only thank everyone that has stood by me through every phase be it the ups or the downs of my life
Q: Most important lesson life has taught you?
Quite a few but over time and through my experiences I have learnt that if you want something, you will find ways to achieve it. Big dreams come at a cost and so if you are not willing to put in the necessary or required hard work, then there is no point talking about or having such dreams. Talent is important but it’s not everything, consistent hard and smart work always beats talent and nothing is impossible if you believe in yourself and keep moving forward