Rugby
1News

Samoa, Tonga fail to qualify for Olympic sevens

June 21, 2021
LONDON, ENGLAND - MAY 21: Gordon Langkilde of Samoa is tackled by Owen Jenkins of Wales during the HSBC London Sevens at Twickenham Stadium on May 21, 2017 in London, United Kingdom. (Photo by Charles McQuillan/Getty Images for World Rugby)

Both Samoa and Tonga have failed to book a spot in rugby sevens in Tokyo after failing to come out on top of the Olympic qualifier tournament in Monaco.

The final repechage saw Ireland qualify for Tokyo in the men's competition, while France and Russia qualified from the women's competition.

Samoa finished second in their group but were beaten in the semi-finals by France, while Tonga managed just one win and were fourth in their group.

Ireland then beat France 28-19 in the final after trailing 12-7 at halftime to grab the only men’s spot up for grabs.

One positive for the Tonga men’s team was the qualification of some of their stars for ‘Ikale Tahi, with former All Black centre Malakai Fekitoa, ex Wallabies loose forward Lopeti Timani and former Australian sevens international Afusipa Taumoepeau all playing the tournament and now eligible for the 15-a-side team.

The men’s rugby sevens tournament kicks off on July 26 and will be followed by the women’s competition.

Rugby Sevens made its debut at the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, where Australia won the women's title and Fiji won the gold medal in the men's.

SHARE ME

More Stories