Oceania Rugby Sevens Championship cancelled [1]
Monday, September 7, 2020 - 17:28
The Oceania Rugby Men’s and Women’s Championship scheduled to take place in November this year has been cancelled due to CoViD-19.
The decision was made by Oceania Rugby in consultation with relevant government and international public health authority for the wellbeing of the regional rugby community and the wide public.
Oceania Rugby General Manager Bruce Cook said the Oceania Rugby Sevens Championship is the only competition that brings all Oceania Member Unions into one location from the World’s best team in the circuit, to the development unions which is truly unique.
“While disappointed with the cancellation, we continue to leave no stone unturned in ensuring the health and wellbeing of players, officials and public in the Oceania region is prioritized above all,” he said.
Oceania Rugby is currently consulting with World Rugby to explore separate supplementary competition at regional levels.
This is in addition to events to ensure Olympic Qualified teams and teams seeking qualification through the Olympic repechage series will have the appropriate amount of high-level competition opportunities.
Oceania Rugby Competitions Manager Wayne Schuster said there is a strong desire with the region for the supplementary competition concept.
He added that Oceania Rugby in collaboration with Member Unions are putting all its efforts together to assist World Rugby explore opportunities for a safe and secure High Impact return to action in Oceania.
Last month, the Oceania Athletics Association cancelled all 2020 Championship events due to CoViD-19.