Buff Tongan Olympian gets a pretty awkward oil rub on live TV

It's a bit greasy.
 By 
Johnny Lieu
 on 
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Original image has been replaced. Credit: Mashable

It's safe to say the internet went wild for Tongan athlete Pita Taufatofua.

Taufatofua, who was born in Australia and competes in Taekwondo, was the island nation's flag bearer at the Opening Ceremony of the Rio Olympics, delighting audiences with his gleaming baby oil laden body throughout the broadcast.

Here is a convenient reminder of what that looked like, because of course you need to see it again.


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Anyway, the shiny star of Tonga made an appearance on America's TODAY show on Monday, talking about his long journey to the Rio Olympics and how he felt when he first walked into the opening ceremony.

"It was crazy, it was 20 years worth of work to get me there, but it was sort of surreal. It's hard to describe. It was a crazy, crazy feeling," Taufatofua said.

Eventually the interview led to a rather awkward rubdown by the breakfast show's hosts, Hoda Kotb, Natalie Morales and Jenna Bush Hager. Oh boy.

There's also video if you dare watch it. You could say the encounter just got just a little bit slimy, even if it's just a bit of fun.

Topics Olympics

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Johnny Lieu

Mashable Australia's Web Culture Reporter.Reach out to me on Twitter at @Johnny_Lieu or via email at jlieu [at] mashable.com

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