Canadian 7s Squad To Participate In World Series
The rugby sevens squad based in Canada are looking to the future of the World Series after they placed eighth and ninth while taking part in the Tokyo Olympic Games. Teams from both the men’s and women’s sides will be competing in the HSBC World Rugby Sevens, which will be taking place in Vancouver on the 18th and 19th of September, and then again on the 25th and 26th of September in Edmonton.
The events are the among the first of their kind following the halt of the sevens circuit following the start of the pandemic in March of last year. And despite the progress that have been made, restrictions that related to the pandemic mean that there will only be four competitors in the women’s tournament, including Canada, Mexico, Britain, and the United States.
The women on the Canadian team, which is currently ranked third, will play the first round against the US, ranked sixth, before moving on to Great Britain and then lastly Mexico. The format will give the teams a chance to compete against each other before the two teams left behind battle for the gold, while the other two look to earn third place. The Canadian side will be captained by Kelly Russell, who also coaches the team.
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Future Stars For The Men’s Team
The Canadian team was short five players due to retirement after the announcement of its finish in 8th place during the Olympic Games. Some of the players that announced their retirement included Conor Trainor, Justin Douglas, Nate Hirayama, and Connor Braid.
Lucas Hammond, Matt Mullins, Patrick Kay, Theo Sauder, and Mike Fauilefau were the players that have been added to the Olympic roster that will not be taking part in the Vancouver tournament. Three Olympians will be taking part, however, and consists of: Jake Thiel, Andrew Coe, and Phil Berna.
Vancouver Attendance
In terms of how much seating will be available in Vancouver, restrictions mean that only 50 percent of seating will be free for purchase, which means that there will be around 13,500 tickets for sale in total.
This is a large different from last year, which saw a much larger turnout of 29,533, which is the largest crowd in Canadian history. For Edmonton, there is expected to be a much larger crowd, where Rugby Canada is offering half of the 32,000 seats available to buy