Victor Eriakpo Ubogu (born 8 September 1964) is a retired rugby player who played for

Bath Bath may refer to: * Bathing, immersion in a fluid ** Bathtub, a large open container for water, in which a person may wash their body ** Public bathing, a public place where people bathe * Thermae, ancient Roman public bathing facilities Plac ...

and

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

national team.

Travel to England and schooling

In 1977, after arriving in the United Kingdom from

Lagos Lagos ( ; ), or Lagos City, is a large metropolitan city in southwestern Nigeria. With an upper population estimated above 21 million dwellers, it is the largest city in Nigeria, the most populous urban area on the African continent, and on ...

, Nigeria, he attended West Buckland School in

Devon Devon ( ; historically also known as Devonshire , ) is a ceremonial county in South West England. It is bordered by the Bristol Channel to the north, Somerset and Dorset to the east, the English Channel to the south, and Cornwall to the west ...

. He received the school's top award, the Fortescue Medal. While at the school, he played for England Under-18s. He went on to the

University of Birmingham The University of Birmingham (informally Birmingham University) is a Public university, public research university in Birmingham, England. It received its royal charter in 1900 as a successor to Queen's College, Birmingham (founded in 1825 as ...

to study

chemical engineering Chemical engineering is an engineering field which deals with the study of the operation and design of chemical plants as well as methods of improving production. Chemical engineers develop economical commercial processes to convert raw materials ...

. While at university, he played for

Moseley Moseley ( ') is an affluent suburb in south Birmingham, England, south of the city centre. It is located within the eponymous Moseley ward of the constituency of Birmingham Hall Green and Moseley (UK Parliament constituency), Hall Green and ...

. He went on to

St Anne's College, Oxford St Anne's College is a Colleges of the University of Oxford, constituent college of the University of Oxford in England. It was founded in 1879 and gained full college status in 1959. Originally a women's college, it has admitted men since 1979. ...

, where he was selected to play with the University of Oxford RFC and achieved his Blue.

Professional career

After leaving

Oxford Oxford () is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and non-metropolitan district in Oxfordshire, England, of which it is the county town. The city is home to the University of Oxford, the List of oldest universities in continuou ...

, he joined Bath Rugby. He started for Bath in the victorious 1998 Heineken Cup Final as they defeated Brive. In 1992, he became a

prop A prop, formally known as a (theatrical) property, is an object actors use on stage or screen during a performance or screen production. In practical terms, a prop is considered to be anything movable or portable on a stage or a set, distinct ...

for the

England national rugby union team The England national rugby union team represents the Rugby Football Union (RFU) in international rugby union. They compete in the annual Six Nations Championship with France national rugby union team, France, Ireland national rugby union team, ...

, where he remained until 1999.

Post-career ventures

Ubogu founded the "Shoeless Joe's" chain of sports bars. In 2001, Ubogu appeared on '' Lily Savage's Blankety Blank''. Since 2004, he has run a high-end travel and sporting

hospitality Hospitality is the relationship of a host towards a guest, wherein the host receives the guest with some amount of goodwill and welcome. This includes the reception and entertainment of guests, visitors, or strangers. Louis de Jaucourt, Louis, ...

company, using his initials as its name.

References

External links

Victor Ubogu ProfileVictor Ubogu's sport hospitality companySunday Times article 28 February 2010
1964 births Living people Alumni of St Anne's College, Oxford Alumni of the University of Birmingham Bath Rugby players Black British sportsmen England international rugby union players English rugby union players Birmingham Moseley Rugby players Nigerian emigrants to the United Kingdom Oxford University RFC players People educated at West Buckland School Rugby union props 1995 Rugby World Cup players 1999 Rugby World Cup players 20th-century English sportsmen {{England-rugbyunion-bio-1960s-stub