Rio Olympics

[qwerty51]

So now the Reds have stopped negotiating with Quade, will we see him switch to 7s like SBW?

I doubt he wants to go the whole year with only 7s income.

 

[D-Box]

To be confirmed once World Rugby or Rugby Europe get of their backsides and actually release an article but it looks like these are the Women's European Qualifiers for the Olympics

Women's
Qualified - France

Final Qualification Tournament
Russia (next three to be confirmed following European Olympic Repechage Tournament in Lisbon 18/19 July)

http://www.rugbyeurope.eu/competition-100.htm
http://www.rugbyeurope.eu/article-783.htm

 

[D-Box]

And if anyone really wants to drill down into all the details of qualification start at https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rugby_sevens_at_the_2016_Summer_Olympics

Clinking through to various tournaments gives you more details than can be found easily on the World Rugby site or the relevant Zone site and if today is anything to go by faster.

 

[Omar Comin']

I doubt he wants to go the whole year with only 7s income.

Depends on what motivates him!

The Olympics is a dream for a lot of people and it's a once in a lifetime opportunity for him. Experiences like that are worth more than money. He's already done very well and has plenty of years left to earn big bucks. And it's not like he'd be poor for a year. He'd still be able to earn well above pretty much any other Australian Olympic athlete.

Who knows, he might make comparable (maybe even more?) money from sponsorship as the face of the Australian Olympic rugby team than as the face of the Reds. And if the ARU are serious about sevens then having Quade Cooper involved will push it into the mainstream for a year (provided we qualify!).

 

[qwerty51]

Depends on what motivates him!

He signed for Toulon so $$ (not that there's anything wrong with that).

 

[Omar Comin']

Well I hope at least a couple of top Australian players (or at least established super rugby players) will give the sevens a crack. Can't put a price tag on going to the Olympics.

Most Olympians could be earning more money doing something else.

 

[qwerty51]

We've heard nothing from the Aus side. Already come out that Messam and SBW won't be at the Chiefs next year.

 

[Highlander35]

Looking through the European tournaments, Ireland are still technically a chance to qualify for the Olympics. Would you look at that.

Won the Division C trophy and got into the Division B tournament. Then won the Division B tournament and have qualified for the European Repêchage to qualify for the final Repêchage.

Still a hell of a lot of work to do, but come on the Irish!

 

[RugbyReg]

He signed for Toulon so $$ (not that there's anything wrong with that).

Money a factor as it is for every professional rugby player, but I suspect enjoyment of the game will also be a factor. Playing that type of rugby with those types of players, would be a thrill for someone like QC (Quade Cooper) who needs to keep pushing his game further.

Likewise the chance to go to the Olympics would be huge for him, particularly with his good mate SBW setting his sights on it too. He's had a taste of that life when he dated Stef Rice and I think would back himself to want to hang around with the likes of the Dream Team and Usain Bolt etc (if they are still competing).

Plus he will likely off-set the contract thing with boxing money.

 

[waiopehu oldboy]

French women have qualified for Rio, runners-up Russia go into the repechage:

http://www.worldrugby.org/news/77487

 

[D-Box]

Men's Running Qualification

Host - Brazil

1st WS - Fiji (164 points) - Qualified
2nd WS - South Africa (154 points) - Qualified
3rd WS - New Zealand (152 points) - Qualified
4th WS - England (GB) (132 points) - Qualified

Regional Qualifiers (Tournaments to be held 2nd half 2015 but I will assume the they will go the way of the World Rugby Series rankings)
Africa - Kenya
Asia - Japan
Europe - France
North America - USA - Qualified (NACRA)
Oceania - Australia
South America - Argentina - Qualified (CONSUR)

Final Qualification tournament (assume the next best team gets this)
Lucky bastards Samoa (Final v Canada/Portugal)

Woman's Running Qualification

Host - Brazil

1st WS - New Zealand (108) Qualified
2nd WS - Canada (96) Qualified
3rd WS - Australia (94) Qualified
4th WS - Great Britain (76) Qualified on a count back

Regional Qualifiers (Tournaments to be held 2nd half of 2015 but I will assume the they will go the way of the World Rugby Series rankings)

Africa - South Africa
Asia - China
Europe - France - Qualified (Rugby Europe)
North America - USA - Qualified (NACRA)
Oceania - Fiji
South America - Columbia Qualified - (CONSUR)

Final Qualification tournament (assume the next best team gets this)

Lucky Bastards - Russia (v Spain)

Qualification Schedule

2015 CONSUR 7's Olympic Qualifying Tournament 8 June 2015 TBAhttp://www.consur.org/index.php/component/k2/item/2411-resultados-parciales-dia-3
2015 NACRA 7's Olympic Qualifying Tournament 14 June 2015 Cary, United States http://www.worldrugby.org/news/76391
2015 Rugby Europe 7's Olympic Qualifying Tournament 12 July 2015 Various http://www.worldrugby.org/news/77487
2015 ARFU 7's Olympic Qualifying Tournament 8 November 2015 Hong Kong
2015 CAR 7's Olympic Qualifying Tournament 8 November 2015 Kenya
2015 FORU 7's Olympic Qualifying Tournament 15 November 2015 Auckland, New Zealand

Men's Final Qualification Tournament

Europe 1, Europe 2, Europe 3, Europe 4
Africa 1, Africa 2, Africa 3
Asia 1, Asia 2, Asia 3
Oceania 1, Oceania 2
Canada, Mexico
Chile, Uruguay

Women's Final Qualification Tournament

Russia, Europe 2, Europe 3, Europe 4
Africa 1, Africa 2, Africa 3
Asia 1, Asia 2, Asia 3
Oceania 1, Oceania 2
Mexico, Trinidad & Tobago
Argentina, Venezuela

 

[Highlander35]

Final leg of automatic European qualification occurs this weekend.

France have more or less secured the qualification spot already, having won the Moscow and Lyon legs, looking to get a clean sweep in Exeter. Spain are well placed to claim the World Repechage spot, with 34 points to closest competitor Russia's 28.

The final 3 world repechage spots will be decided by a final qualifying tournament at a date TBC. If the standings do not change, the 8 remaining teams in the European Grand Prix (Russia, Portugal, Romania, Italy, Germany, Lithuania, Georgia and Belgium) will be joined by the top 3 from the Division A tournament ( Poland, Ukraine and Latvia ), and the Division B winner (Ireland).

Live stream of the Tournament outside the UK and France available here, starting about 8pm AEST.

http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x2x042l

 

[Highlander35]

French Qualified, Spanish into the Final Qualifying tournament, European Repechage as above for final 3 places into the Qualifying Tournament.

 

[D-Box]

Following the Europe tournament we now have a break until the Women's African qualification in September and then all the rest in November with the Aussie men hanging it all out on the weekend of the 15th November.

Men's Running Qualification

Host - Brazil

1st WS - Fiji (164 points) - Qualified
2nd WS - South Africa (154 points) - Qualified
3rd WS - New Zealand (152 points) - Qualified
4th WS - England (GB) (132 points) - Qualified

Regional Qualifiers
Africa - 15th November
Asia - 8th November
Europe - France - Qualified (Europe)
North America - USA - Qualified (NACRA)
Oceania - 15th November
South America - Argentina - Qualified (CONSUR)

Final Qualification tournament
Lucky bastards

Woman's Running Qualification

Host - Brazil

1st WS - New Zealand (108) Qualified
2nd WS - Canada (96) Qualified
3rd WS - Australia (94) Qualified
4th WS - Great Britain (76) Qualified on a count back

Regional Qualifiers

Africa - 27th September
Asia - 29th November
Europe - France - Qualified (Rugby Europe)
North America - USA - Qualified (NACRA)
Oceania - 15th November
South America - Columbia Qualified - (CONSUR)

Final Qualification tournament

Lucky Bastards -

Qualification Schedule

2015 CONSUR 7's Olympic Qualifying Tournament 8 June 2015 TBAhttp://www.consur.org/index.php/component/k2/item/2411-resultados-parciales-dia-3
2015 NACRA 7's Olympic Qualifying Tournament 14 June 2015 Cary, United States http://www.worldrugby.org/news/76391
2015 Rugby Europe 7's Olympic Qualifying Tournament 12 July 2015 Varioushttp://www.worldrugby.org/news/77487 http://www.worldrugby.org/news/80309
2015 ARFU 7's Olympic Qualifying Tournament 8 November 2015 Hong Kong
2015 CAR 7's Olympic Qualifying Tournament 8 November 2015 Kenya
2015 FORU 7's Olympic Qualifying Tournament 15 November 2015 Auckland, New Zealand

Men's Final Qualification Tournament

Spain, Europe 2, Europe 3, Europe 4
Africa 1, Africa 2, Africa 3
Asia 1, Asia 2, Asia 3
Oceania 1, Oceania 2
Canada, Mexico
Chile, Uruguay

Women's Final Qualification Tournament

Russia, Europe 2, Europe 3, Europe 4
Africa 1, Africa 2, Africa 3
Asia 1, Asia 2, Asia 3
Oceania 1, Oceania 2
Mexico, Trinidad & Tobago
Argentina, Venezuela

 

[Marcelo]

The Pommies will play with Welshmen and Scots as GB, right?

 

[Highlander35]

They won't play NI players out of respect to the IRFU, but otherwise the Great Britain team can select players from anywhere in Great Britain, England just gets to be the managing Union.

 

[Highlander35]

European Repechage finished, their spots for world qualifying finalised.

Russia, Germany and Ireland through for the mens. Spain, Ireland and Portugal through for the womens.

 

[D-Box]

Provided the Aussie's win Oceania you've got to get behind the Irish men to pick up the last place. From the bottom to Europe to the Olympics in one year - what a storyline

 

[Omar Comin']

Provided the Aussie's win Oceania you've got to get behind the Irish men to pick up the last place. From the bottom to Europe to the Olympics in one year - what a storyline

It's a great story and it will be interesting to see if Ireland draft in some top players for the repechage. But I think Canada and (hopefully for us) Samoa will be the most likely winners.

 

[waiopehu oldboy]

No great surprise but Simon Amor confirmed as coach for men's Team GB, Gareth Williams as his assistant:

http://www.planetrugby.com/story/0,25883,3551_64960,00.html