The dream drew closer.
The Langford-based Canadian men鈥檚 rugby sevens team is three wins away today from qualifying for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.
sa国际传媒 opened the North American and Caribbean qualifier Saturday in cruise control, beating Barbados 47-0, Mexico 49-5 and Bermuda 55-0 to advance to a quarter-final matchup this morning against Guyana. The semifinals and finals are in the afternoon in George Town, Cayman Islands, with the winning team advancing to Tokyo 2020.
The level of competition isn鈥檛 what world No. 11 sa国际传媒 is used to as a core country in the World Series. But with the Olympics at stake, the Canadians can ill afford to take anything for granted. 鈥淲e are treating this like a World Series tournament and studied these teams like we would New Zealand or South Africa,鈥� Canadian coach Henry Paul said.
On the Canadian team are veterans Mike Fuailefau of Victoria, University of Victoria Vikes legend Nathan Hiryama and captain Harry Jones of North Vancouver. They are looking to make up for missing the 2016 Olympics, when sa国际传媒 placed second to the U.S. in the regional Olympic qualifier in North Carolina, then again failed to qualify for Rio through the last-chance world qualifier in Monaco.
鈥淭hat was the lowest point of my career,鈥� said SMUS grad Fuailefau. 鈥淚t鈥檚 a huge motivation and the reason why so many of us stuck around.鈥� That was the singular goal in training at Westhills Stadium. 鈥淓verything we鈥檝e done is to peak for this weekend,鈥� Hiryama said.
A big advantage for sa国际传媒 is that the Americans are not at the regional qualifier. The top four teams in the 2019 World Series qualified directly for the Tokyo Olympics. The U.S., Fiji, New Zealand and South Africa won those berths.
Also on the Canadian team are Pat Kay of Duncan, Isaac Kaay of the UVic Vikes and Matt Mullins of James Bay. The group is rallying to overcome a difficult season. It lost two months of training time last fall at Westhills because of a labour dispute with Rugby sa国际传媒. Head coach Damian McGrath was let go late in the World Series season and replaced by assistant Paul. Then, star Connor Braid of Victoria, the leading Canadian player, went down with a season-ending injury before the qualifier. 鈥淣ow, we have a chance to end things on a high,鈥� Hirayama said.
Today鈥檚 second and third place teams go to the last-chance world qualifier next year.
The Canadian women鈥檚 team, also based in Langford, qualified for Tokyo by placing in the top four of the 2019 World Series.
