Rugby World Cup Sevens
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| Rugby World Cup Sevens | |
|---|---|
| Sport | Rugby union sevens |
| Instituted | 1993 |
| Number of teams | 24 (men's finals), 16 (women's finals) |
| Country | International (IRB) |
| Holders |  Wales (Men's) Australia (Women's) (2009) |
The Rugby World Cup Sevens is the premier international Rugby sevens competition. The event is organised by the sport's governing body, the International Rugby Board (IRB), and is contested by the men's national sevens teams every four years. The inaugural tournament was held in 1993 in Scotland, the birthplace of rugby sevens. Wales are the current World Champions having won the competition in 2009. Fiji have won the tournament twice. New Zealand and England have both won a single tournament each, while both Australia and South Africa have reached the finals, but have not secured a title.
The winners of the tournament are awarded the Melrose Cup, named after the Scottish town of Melrose where the first rugby sevens game was played.
Prior to the inclusion of Rugby Sevens into the Olympic Games, the IRB stated that their intention would be to end the World Cup Sevens so that the Olympic Games would be the one pinnacle in a four year cycle for Rugby Sevens[1]
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[edit] History
The Rugby World Cup Sevens originated with a proposal by the Scottish Rugby Union to the International Rugby Football Board. The inaugural tournament was held at Murrayfield in Edinburgh in April 1993, and has been held every four years since.
Hong Kong, which had played a major role in the international development of the Sevens game, hosted the 1997 event. The final was won by Fiji over South Africa. The 2001 tournament, held in Mar del Plata, Argentina. The 2005 event returned to Hong Kong.
The IRB made a submission to the International Olympic Committee in 2005 for Sevens to become an Olympic sport. However, the submission failed because committee members felt IRB needed to improve promotion of the women's game. To that end, the IRB implemented the first women's Sevens Rugby World Cup tournament in 2009.[2]
The 2009 Rugby World Cup Sevens was held in Dubai during the first weekend of March 2009 and included a separate women's tournament. Cumulative attendance of 78,000 was reported.[2]
Prior to the inclusion of Rugby Sevens into the Olympic Games, the IRB stated that their intention would be to end the World Cup Sevens so that the Olympic Games would be the one pinnacle in a four year cycle for Rugby Sevens.[1]
The adoption of rugby sevens and golf was recommended to the full IOC council by its executive board ahead of squash, karate, roller sports, baseball and softball in August 2009.[3] The International Olympic Committee voted in 2009 in Copenhagen for sevens to become a medal sport at the 2016 Games in Rio de Janeiro.[4] The IRB had said the 2013 World Cup in Moscow – featuring 24 men's teams and 16 women's teams – would be the last one. However, following feedback from its member unions, the IRB's general assembly in October may vote on whether the tournament should continue. The principal concern is the inequity that Sevens at the Olympics would accommodate only 12 teams.[5]
[edit] Tournaments
[edit] Men's
| Year | Host | Final | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Winner | Score | Runner-up | |||
| 1993 |  Scotland |
 England |
21 – 17 |  Australia |
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| 1997 |  Hong Kong |
 Fiji |
24 – 21 |  South Africa |
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| 2001 |  Argentina |
 New Zealand |
31 – 12 | Australia |
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| 2005 |  Hong Kong |
Fiji |
29 – 19 | New Zealand |
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| 2009 |  Dubai |
 Wales |
19 – 12 |  Argentina |
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| 2013 |  Russia |
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[edit] Women's
| Year | Host | Final | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Winner | Score | Runner-up | |||
| 2009 | Dubai |
Australia |
15 – 10 | New Zealand |
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| 2013 | Russia |
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[edit] Match play
The 2001 tournament, held in suva, fiji, would add another chapter to the legend of New Zealand's Jonah Lomu. Lomu, used sparingly in pool play, received his opportunity when New Zealand captain and Sevens legend Eric Rush broke his leg against England in the last pool match. Lomu went on to score three tries in the final.
In 2005, Waisale Serevi came out of international retirement to captain Fiji in Hong Kong, and led Fiji to their second Melrose Cup. In the process, they denied New Zealand their second consecutive Melrose Cup and also prevented England from becoming the first nation to hold the Rugby World Cup in both fifteens and Sevens.
At the 2009 tournament held in Dubai in March 2009, Wales, Samoa, Argentina and Kenya combined to stun the rugby world by defeating the traditional powerhouses of New Zealand, England, South Africa and Fiji in the quarter-finals, guaranteeing a new Melrose Cup winner. Wales and Argentina met in the final after winning their semi-final games, with Wales triumphing 19–12. Wales' Taliesin Selley was named player of the tournament.
The top all-time try-scorer for the Rugby World Cup Sevens has been Fijian rugby winger Marika Vunibaka who has scored 23 tries in 3 of the sevens world cups he has played in since he made his debut in 1997.
[edit] See also
- Rugby World Cup
- Hong Kong Sevens
- Wellington Sevens
- IRB Sevens World Series
- Rugby union at the Summer Olympics
[edit] References
- ^ a b RWC Sevens to be scrapped for Olympics, ESPN, 27 May 2009 Retrieved 24 February 2011
- ^ a b "Tietjens backs sevens Olympic bid", ESPN, (13 August 2009), Retrieved 29 March 2011
- ^ Lowe, Alex (7 October 2009). "Lomu lends his weight to rugby sevens Olympic bid", The Scotsman. Retrieved 29 March 2011
- ^ John Duce, (27 Mar 2011). "New Zealand Beat England 29–17 to Win Hong Kong Rugby Sevens", Bloomberg, Retrieved 29 March 2011
- ^ Sallay, Alvin (29 Mar 2011). "IRB under pressure to save World Cup Sevens", South China Morning Post
[edit] External links
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