New Zealand Sevens (tournament)
Sport | Rugby sevens |
---|---|
Founded | 2000 |
No. of teams | 16 |
Country | New Zealand |
Most recent champion(s) | South Africa (2017) |
Most titles | New Zealand (9 titles) |
Official website | sevens.co.nz |
The New Zealand Sevens is an annual rugby sevens tournament currently held at Waikato Stadium in Hamilton, New Zealand.[1][2] For the first eighteen years of its history the event was held in Wellington.[1][3] The event is the fourth on the World Rugby Sevens Series circuit, and is generally held on the first weekend of February. As of 2018[update], it precedes the Sydney, Australia, tournament by a week.
History
Wellington
Wellington first hosted a tournament in 2000 as part of the inaugural world series. The event was the first to be hosted in the newly-developed Westpac Stadium.[4] The tournament built a reputation for a party atmosphere, with a large proportion of attendees choosing to wear fancy dress.[5] Movie figures such as the Men in Black (MIB) and Austin Powers were crowd favorites and an impersonator of Austin Powers was a regular for many years performing for the crowd.[4] Host team New Zealand dominated the sevens competition in Wellington, winning half of all the tournaments held.
Hamilton
The location of the tournament was moved to Hamilton in 2018,[3] after the attendances in Wellington had declined.[6]
Results
References
- ^ a b "HSBC New Zealand Sevens: Hamilton". Sky. 18 January 2018. Archived from the original on 23 January 2018. Retrieved 23 January 2018.
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suggested) (help) - ^ a b "New Zealand Sevens World Series event moving to Hamilton from 2018". Stuff. 22 May 2017. Archived from the original on 30 January 2018. Retrieved 30 January 2018.
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suggested) (help) - ^ a b "Sevens' man steps away from annual city 'party'". Dominion Post. 3 August 2013. Archived from the original on 30 January 2018. Retrieved 30 January 2018.
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suggested) (help) - ^ "Sevens Rugby - the party, the costumes, the players". Talking Rugby Union. 30 July 2014. Archived from the original on 30 January 2018. Retrieved 30 January 2018.
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suggested) (help) - ^ "Plenty of finger-pointing about demise of the Wellington Sevens". Stuff. 8 February 2016. Archived from the original on 24 January 2017. Retrieved 30 January 2018.
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External links
- New Zealand Sevens official site
- Profile on UR7s.com at the Wayback Machine (archived 12 May 2016)