Rugby union football was last held at the Olympics in 1924 and the U.S. won the gold medal with a 17-3 victory over France before a crowd of 30,000. Introduced by Baron Pierre de Coubertin, rugby was on the Olympic program at Paris in 1900, at London in 1908, Antwerp in 1920, and Paris again in 1924. Rugby union was cancelled as an Olympic event in 1928, and the United States remain Olympic champions.
Today, the sport of rugby is recognized by the International Olympic Committee but is not included on the official Olympic program. The International Rugby Board, or IRB, is the governing body of the sport and is spearheading an effort to make Rugby Sevens an Olympic sport in 2016. The IRB hopes to convince IOC members of the merits of seven-a-side rugby as a global game with a unique ethos and a passionate following.
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Sevens is the fastest growing form of Rugby that features seven players on each team with two seven-minute periods per match. (Rugby union features 15 players per side with two 40-minute periods.) The fast-paced, high-scoring nature of this type of rugby often features the quickest and fittest players in the world. In 2008, 32 national teams took part in the IRB Sevens World Series, an annual tournament that is played in eight different countries to sell-out crowds with a global TV reach of 500 million viewers.
The decision to eliminate baseball and softball from the next round of Olympics allowed IOC members to vote on the inclusion of two new sports in 2012. Five sports — roller sports, squash, golf, karate and rugby sevens — had been studied by the Olympic Commission as part of its two-year analysis. In 2005, IOC members selected karate and squash as the two sports which could potentially be chosen to join the Olympics for London 2012. Rugby was a close third in voting but did not gain enough votes to make official consideration. At the conclusion of voting, neither squash nor karate obtained a two-thirds majority and were not included as new sports for 2012.
The IOC is asking the general public across the world for feedback about its plans for the future of the Olympic Games and has created a specific website, the Virtual Olympic Congress, to record detailed feedback through December 31, 2008. Interested parties can respond to the IOC’s Virtual Olympic Congress at http://www.2009congress.olympic.org/.
The International Rugby Board, or IRB, is a member of the International Sports Federations, an organization that must ensure that each sports' statutes, practice and activities conform with the Olympic Charter. In order to be recognized, these organizations must apply the Olympic Movement Anti-Doping Code and conduct effective out-of-competition tests in accordance with the established rules.
The IRB's arguments as to why Rugby should be in the Olympic Games are as follows:
- Rugby reinforces the ideals of Olympism, thanks to Rugby’s long-standing ethos of fair play and friendship
- Rugby Sevens would reach a new and young audience, including Rugby’s 3 million players in 116 countries and the tens of millions of fans worldwide
- Rugby Sevens does not need a purpose built stadium and would fill the Olympic Stadium in the first week of competition, adding an additional vibrant and youthful tone for the Games
- Rugby Sevens would extend the number of potential medal-winning nations in what would be a true world championship. Countries that could aspire to Olympic success in Rugby include Fiji, Samoa, Argentina, South Africa, Kenya and New Zealand.
- Rugby would increase funds to grow the Olympic Movement, by attracting new commercial partners and spectators. At the same time Rugby would enjoy increased funding and access to facilities from National Olympic Committees as an Olympic sport.
The IOC will vote on which sports to include in the Olympic Games in Copenhagen, Denmark in October 2009. For more information about the inclusion of Rugby Sevens in the next Olympics, visit the official site of the IRB. Sphere: Related Content
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