BEING included as an Olympic sport is the best thing that has happened to rugby sevens.

This seven-a-side, fast-paced offshoot of traditional 15-a-side rugby will be included in the 2016 and 2020 Summer Games, after being approved by the International Olympic Committee last month.

And its effect was immediately evident, as fans packed the weekend's Singapore Cricket Club (SCC) International Rugby 7s tournament at the Padang to catch a glimpse of the top club players in action.

This year's tournament saw the return of the school and college categories after a 15-year absence from the main sevens tournament. Mr Peter Hutton, chairman of the event's organising committee, felt that it was the most opportune time for its comeback, saying: "The sport is going to grow enormously, and it's now a dream for a lot of young players to win an Olympic gold.

"We have a lot of youngsters who are playing rugby at school level. Perhaps, now that it is an Olympic sport, these youths can be persuaded to continue playing at club level."

Ian Farr, the coach for under-18 school champions Tanglin Trust School, said that in three years, the sport has grown from not even being a part of its co-curricular activities to being a popular sport for both its junior and senior schools.

Marc Nelson, captain of the victorious Tanglin team, said he had no preference over which kind of rugby to play. Said the 17-year-old: "I just like to handle the ball and play. As long as I'm on the field, I'm fine with any format."

South Africa's SA Vipers retained their SCC 7s title by beating Fiji side Davetalevu 24-0 in the Cup final.BEING included as an Olympic sport is the best thing that has happened to rugby sevens.

This seven-a-side, fast-paced offshoot of traditional 15-a-side rugby will be included in the 2016 and 2020 Summer Games, after being approved by the International Olympic Committee last month.

And its effect was immediately evident, as fans packed the weekend's Singapore Cricket Club (SCC) International Rugby 7s tournament at the Padang to catch a glimpse of the top club players in action.

This year's tournament saw the return of the school and college categories after a 15-year absence from the main sevens tournament.

Mr Peter Hutton, chairman of the event's organising committee, felt that it was the most opportune time for its comeback, saying: "The sport is going to grow enormously, and it's now a dream for a lot of young players to win an Olympic gold.

"We have a lot of youngsters who are playing rugby at school level. Perhaps, now that it is an Olympic sport, these youths can be persuaded to continue playing at club level."

Ian Farr, the coach for under-18 school champions Tanglin Trust School, said that in three years, the sport has grown from not even being a part of its co-curricular activities to being a popular sport for both its junior and senior schools.

Marc Nelson, captain of the victorious Tanglin team, said he had no preference over which kind of rugby to play. Said the 17-year-old: "I just like to handle the ball and play. As long as I'm on the field, I'm fine with any format."

South Africa's SA Vipers retained their SCC 7s title by beating Fiji side Davetalevu 24-0 in the Cup final.

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