The 24 Rugby Sevens athletes selected for the Australian Olympic Team in Paris have been announced by the Australian Olympic Committee today, boasting four history-making three-time Olympians.
Charlotte Caslick, Sharni Smale, Nick Malouf and Henry Hutchison will all become Australia’s first triple Olympians in Rugby Sevens, with Charlotte and Nick named to captain their teams.
Alongside Rio Olympic champions Caslick and Smale, Dominique du Toit, Tia Hinds, Maddison Levi, Faith Nathan and Sariah Paki all return for their second Olympics, with Bridget Clark, Teagan Levi, Isabella Nasser, Kaitlin Shave and Bienne Terita all named for their Olympic debut.
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On the men’s side, Tokyo Olympians Nathan Lawson, Maurice Longbottom and Dietrich Roache return for their second Games, while Ben Dowling, Matthew Gonzalez, Mark Nawaqanitawase, Henry Paterson, Hayden Sargeant, Corey Toole and James Turner will contest their first Olympics.
The women’s team enters Paris as the reigning World Series champions, after a nail-biting victory in the semi-final against New Zealand before defeating France to win last month’s World Series final.
The men’s team tasted podium success at the Cape Town and Perth legs of the World Series with a further two top-4 finishes.
In Paris’ Stade de France the Australian men will face off against Argentina, Samoa and Kenya in their pool matches, while the women will take on Ireland, Great Britain and South Africa.
Deputy Chef de Mission for the Australian Olympic Team in Paris Ken Wallace announced the teams in French theatrette style at Sydney’s Hubert restaurant.
“Congratulations to the 24 Rugby Sevens athletes who will proudly represent Australia in Paris,” he said.
“These teams have shown they are elite performers and genuine podium contenders. It is a tremendous achievement to make an Australian Olympic Team, that speaks to not only their talent but years of dedication and determination to reach this moment.
“A special congratulations to Sharni, Charlotte, Nick and Henry on becoming the first athletes in their sport to compete at three Olympics – they were trailblazers in Rio and now history-makers in Paris.
“Thank you to the team at Rugby Australia for building an outstanding high-performance environment that has the Aussie men and women right at the peak of Rugby Sevens performance.”
Captain Charlotte Caslick is one of World Rugby’s most decorated players, one of only two female players ever to win multiple World Rugby Sevens Player of the Year Awards (two), Olympic gold, Commonwealth gold, a Rugby World Cup and the world series.
“I’m really excited to be heading to a third Olympics and cannot wait to play alongside these girls,” she said. “We’ve worked really hard to get to this point where we are chasing a gold medal.
“I’ve loved every moment of being able to lead these players and we're in a good place to play well.
“Paris is an incredible city that will bring the best out of our players. We can’t wait to get over there.”
Thirty-one-year-old Malouf praised his teammates for their approach into Paris.
“It’s been a huge squad effort over the last three years to put us in a really good place to compete in Paris,” he said.
“John and the coaching staff have put together a really exciting group of quality men who I’m sure will make Australians proud.
“Within the group, we’ve got a nice blend of first, second, and third-time Olympians who are all looking forward to competing hard at the Games. I’m so fortunate to be able to lead this team, and I can’t wait to get stuck into it over in Paris.”
Australian Sevens Women’s Coach Tim Walsh welcomed today’s announcement.
“We have selected a team that knows how to win at big events. Preparations have been detailed, challenging and enjoyable.
“We are a process-driven and performance-based team and the journey over the past three years is reason we are ready to perform.
“The team is always first and we would like to thank Rugby Australia and the Australian Olympic Committee for making the Olympic dream a possibility.”
Australian Sevens Men’s Coach John Manenti shared his excitement for the team named for Paris.
“We’re delighted to announce the 2024 Paris Olympic Squad – a squad that we’re confident will represent Australia with pride and performance.
“The group has over 330 world series tournaments of experience, five previous Olympians and seven debutants.
“We welcome Corey Toole and Mark Nawaqanitawase back to the squad, both of whom have had seamless transitions and add a X-factor to our well-established combinations.
“We had a really good two weeks in Fiji and Darwin recently and that along with our solid season has the team really well prepared for Paris.”
Joshua Turner, Michael Icely, Kahli Henwood and Sidney Taylor have been named as the travelling reserves (known as Ap athletes under Games accreditation). The travelling reserves can be selected as a replacement athlete onto the Australian Olympic Team in case of injury or other withdrawal of one of the selected athletes.
The Rugby Sevens competition will be held at the Stade de France, located in the suburb of Saint-Denis. The men’s competition will be held from Wednesday 24 July to Saturday 27 July and the women’s from Sunday 28 July to Tuesday 30 July.
