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The World Sevens Series returns in Hong Kong with both the Men and Women in action. It’s the first time the Women’s tourney will be an official stop on the circuit. Though the stadium has hosted Women’s tournaments since 1997, it was previously a separate event from the HSBC Series.
As the circuit reaches the final stages this season, the event is of critical importance to determining who will finish in the top four to achieve automatic qualification for the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris. In truth there is only one spot up for grabs in the Women’s draw, with New Zealand, Australia, and the USA now certainties and 4th-place France given a free pass as hosts.
Bianca Farella, Florence Symonds, and Charity Williams are all injured and will not play for Canada in the second-last stop on the season. Olympic veteran Julia Greenshields is a notable addition as is Maddy Grant, who featured during the XV-a-side World Cup in New Zealand. Both Brazil and the USA will field experienced sides, though the Eagles will be without the injured Ilona Maher. Ariana Ramsey is now set to appear in her second Series stop.
For the Men there are four stops to go and considerable competition for the top four with eight teams still with realistic hopes, though for Ireland and the USA they are fading fast. Argentina are currently in 2nd spot behind New Zealand and with a 13-point lead over the rest of the pack look in prime position to book their place in Paris in the coming weeks.
Gastón Revol will play in his 95th tournament for Los Pumas and is just 25 points shy of 1,000 on the circuit. Canada will feature two new names as South African-born Max Stewart and France-based professional Will Percillier have joined the squad. The USA have called up Falcons flyer Pita Vi to replace the injured Maka Unufe.
Canadian viewers can watch on the CBC Sports website, while those in the USA can watch on Peacock. ESPN will broadcast in Latin America. A full fixtures list can be seen here: MEN / WOMEN
MEN’S DRAW
| POOL A | POOL B | POOL C | POOL D |
| Argentina | France | Australia | Ireland |
| Fiji | Great Britain | USA | New Zealand |
| Samoa | Uruguay | Spain | Kenya |
| Canada | Hong Kong | Japan | South Africa |
ARGENTINA
Santiago Álvarez, Tomás Elizaldze, Agustín Fraga, Luciano González Rizzoni, Matteo Graziano, Rodrigo Isgro, Tomás Lizazu, Marcos Moneta, Matías Osadczuk (capt.), Joaquín Pellandini, Gastón Revol , Germán Schulz, Santiago Vera Feld
CANADA
Phil Berna (capt.), Elias Hancock, Thomas Isherwood, Lockie Kratz, Josiah Morra, Anton Ngongo, Matthew Oworu, Will Percillier, Brennig Prevost, David Richard, Alex Russell, Kalin Sager, Max Stewart
URUGUAY
Ignacio Álvarez, Baltazar Amaya, Felipe Arcos Pérez, Diego Ardao (capt.), Bautista Basso, Koba Brazionis, Tomás Etcheverry, Ignacio Facciolo, Valentín Grille, Guillermo Lijtenstein, James McCubbin, Sebastián Schroeder, Mateo Viñals
USA
Perry Baker, Adam Channel, Aaron Cummings, Gavan D’Amore-Morrison, Malacchi Esdale, Lucas Lacamp, Joe Schroeder, David Still, Faitala Talapusi, Stephen Tomasin, Marcus Tupuola, Pita Vi, Kevon Williams (capt.)
WOMEN’S DRAW
| POOL A | POOL B | POOL C |
| New Zealand | Australia | USA |
| Canada | Fiji | France |
| Great Britain | Ireland | Japan |
| Hong Kong | Brazil | Spain |
BRAZIL
Andressa Alves, Luiza Campos, Thalia Costa, Marina Fioravanti (capt.), Aline Furtado, Gisele Gomes, Gabriela Lima, Isadora Lopes, Milena Mariano, Mariana Nicolau, Leila Silva, Rafaela Zanellato
CANADA
Olivia Apps (co-capt.), Alysha Corrigan, Chloe Daniels, Olivia De Couvreur, Maddy Grant, Julia Greenshields, Piper Logan, Breanne Nicholas (co-capt.), Krissy Scurfield, Taejah Thompson, Shalaya Valenzuela, Keyara Wardley
USA
Kayla Canett, Lauren Doyle, Cheta Emba, Nicole Heavirland, Alev Kelter, Kristi Kirshe, Alena Olsen, Ariana Ramsey, Stephanie Rovetti, Alex Sedrick, Naya Tapper (capt.), Kris Thomas
