Tokyo 2020 Olympic Rugby Sevens Pools

With just 28 days to go before Tokyo 2020 Olympic Rugby Sevens tournament kicks off at Tokyo Stadium, World Rugby has announced the competition pools for both the men’s and women’s competitions.

The Japan men’s team have been drawn in Pool B with Fiji, Great Britain and Canada, while the women’s team will compete in Pool C, along with Australia, USA and China. Six days of sizzling Sevens action starts on July 26 with the opening of the men’s tournament and final on July 28. The women’s tournament kicks off the next day, on July 29, with the final taking place on July 31. Japanese rugby fans, as well as fans around the world will be very familiar with the Olympic Sevens venue, as Tokyo Stadium hosted eight matches at Rugby World Cup 2019, including the opening match between Japan and Russia, and Japan’s famous quarter final against South Africa.   

Japan Men’s Sevens Head Coach Kensuke Iwabuchi commented:

“Leading up to the Olympics there have been a lot of highly competitive matches in regional tournaments held around the world. Teams who have qualified for the Olympics can expect tough competition no matter which pool they are in. As a team, we have already started to work out specific tactics for each of our opponents. Fiji defeated us at Rio 2016 on their way to being the inaugural Olympic Sevens gold medalists, defeating Great Britain for the silver medal. Canada also have historically put up a significant challenge when we have played them in past tournaments. With less than 30 days to go, we will continue to train and prepare to ensure we’re ready to compete at the highest level.”

Hare Makiri, Japan Women’s Sevens Head Coach commented:

“Now the pools are decided it will not change our preparation ahead of the Olympics but will allow us to focus on certain areas depending on the teams we will face in our pool.”