Uruguay's men's team and China's women's team enter this weekend's HSBC World Rugby Sevens Challenger Series final in Munich and Krakow as the main contenders in their respective competitions.
The Challenger Series provides a route to HSBC SVNS 2025 and the final weekend will be held in Bavaria at the Dante-Stadion for the men, and at Henryk Reyman's Municipal Stadium in Krakow, Poland for the women.
The top four men's and women's teams will qualify for the promotion and relegation match in Madrid, scheduled to take place from May 31 to June 2.
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Uruguay's men lead the standings with 36 points. They achieved a home win in Montevideo and a bronze medal in Dubai. Kenya – the Dubai champion – is tied with Uruguay with 36 points, but ranks second. Chile ranks second with 32 points, while Germany ranks fourth with 26 points, slightly ahead of China's Hong Kong. The final round of the competition in Munich will be decisive for these teams.
On the women's side, China dominated. They have collected a full 40 points with gold medals in the previous two rounds. Argentina trails with 34 points, having won silver in Montevideo and bronze in Dubai. Belgium and Uganda share third place with 28 points each.
Heavyweight Kenya has 24 points, while emerging powerhouse Poland has 22 points. Which means they are both still competing for fourth place.
The 12-team competition reflects the format of the Olympic Games. It features three groups of four teams each and includes representatives from all six World Rugby regions.
Argentina women's national team captain Sofia Gonzalez expressed her high hopes for the tournament: “The team is really looking forward to the tournament this weekend and we have high expectations. I'm very excited and I'm really looking forward to getting on the field here in Krakow, to represent Argentina, which is obviously our ambition,” she said. The main thing is to finish the season among the top four and qualify for Madrid.”
Poland captain Natalia Pamieta also shared her excitement at the launch event in Krakow: “We are very excited to play again in Krakow. In the last two years of the European Championships and the European Games, we had our friends and families in the stands. With this crowd here in Krakow, we always feel like we have the player Eighth on the team.
“The HSBC Challenger Series is very important for us because we still have a chance to realize our dreams. I really hope that this will not be the last tournament in the series this year and we will go to Madrid in two weeks. This is also a step on the way to the Olympic Games,” Pamieta added. “We will continue to prepare to be part of Paris 2024. There is a lot at stake for us this weekend and we are really looking forward to our first match on Saturday.”
Fans can watch the action on rugbypass.tv.
