1
Kenya and China score brilliant tries to win HSBC Sevens Challenger
By Grant Constable
At the end of three days of intense, high quality competition it was Kenya men and China women who took top honours at the opening round of the World Rugby HSBC Sevens Challenger 2024 in Dubai.
Kenya have been a mainstay on the HSBC SVNS and are aiming to return at the first opportunity following their relegation to the Challenger last year, and they got off to the perfect start with victory in Dubai.
They were made to work for the gold medal in a hard fought final win over Chile which finished 12-5. Earlier in the day Kenya had beaten Uruguay 21-5 in the semi-final while Chile reached the final thanks to a 15-7 win over previously unbeaten Germany.
Uruguay, who alongside Kenya will showcase their skills at the Olympic Games Paris 2024, recovered from semi-final defeat to claim the bronze medal with a 12-7 defeat of Germany.
China were the dominant force in the women’s competition and secured gold with a 19-5 win over Kenya in the final, gaining revenge for their 17-12 loss to the same opposition in Friday’s pool match.
China has earlier cruised into the final thanks to a 45-5 thrashing of Uganda in the semi-final, while Kenya saw off Argentina by 17-0 in the second semi-final. Argentina were impressive throughout the weekend and claimed the bronze thanks to a 36-10 win over Uganda.
Amid ecstatic celebrations in front of the large contingent of supporters, Kenya co-captain Tony Omondi said: “We are super happy. We knew this Challenger event in Dubai was very crucial for us to start on a high and now we must carry on with the momentum until the last tournament.”
“It was a tough final today. Chile was a tough, physical opponent so we had to match them in all aspects and it came out good for us. We must also congratulate our ladies team as well, every game they played before us gave us the inspiration, so we had to deliver and thanks to them we are going back home with two medals.”
China women’s player Chen Keyi said: “We are happy and so proud of our girls and the way we played to our standards. Kenya is a very physical team so I’m proud of our tackling and how hard we worked for each other. We hope we can keep learning, keep playing to our way and keep winning in the next tournaments.”
There is more to play for than ever before in this year’s Challenger with the competition expanded to three rounds and the top four placed men’s and women’s teams qualifying for the new promotion and relegation play-off competition at the HSBC SVNS 2024 Grand Final in Madrid.
The Challenger tournaments replicate the Olympic Games competition format, with the 12 teams drawn into three pools of four teams each. The top two from each pool as well as the two best third-placed finishers will qualify for the knockout stages with quarter-finals and
The Challenger was introduced in February 2020 to boost the development of rugby sevens across the globe and provide a clear promotion pathway to reach the top level of global rugby sevens for the short format of the game which has experienced huge growth over the past two decades since the introduction of the global sevens series and becoming an Olympic sport at the Rio 2016 Games.
The bigger and better than ever 2024 edition of the Challenger consists of three rounds.
Following the opener in Dubai the men’s and women’s teams now move on to Estadio Charrúa in Montevideo, Uruguay on 8-10 March before standalone women’s and men’s events at Henryk Reyman's Municipal Stadium in Krakow, Poland and Dantestadion in Munich, Germany respectively on 18-19 May.
Fans around the globe can watch the action on rugbypass.tv.
Trending on RugbyPass
2
'I think he is one of the best 10s in the world'
3
Bulls' Jake White: 'It’s stupid things, stupid - unbelievably stupid'
4
Danny Wilson hits back at selection critics following Harlequins' win
5
Latest Comments
Unfortunately, Ulster taking on Leinster players has not proven to be a formula for success. Once they've been rejected by Leinster, there doesn't appear to be much chance of representing Ireland.
From my perspective, there are no easy fixes. The other provinces are battling a continuous decline, one which the IRFU aren't really fussed about as long as their boys in blue are succeeding.
And out of interest, how many players were developed through Connacht? Was Henshaw the only Connacht raised player who actually played in the 6 nations this year?
Go to commentsScammed and Saved: GrayHat Hacks Turned My Crypt0 Nightmare Around
It all started with a dream and a single email. I’d been saving Bitc0in for years, hoping to buy my first home. On a rainy Tuesday, I received what looked like an urgent message from my wallet provider, asking me to verify my account details. The email was polished, the logo perfect, and the urgency felt real. Without thinking twice, I clicked the link and entered my credentials. It wasn’t until hours later, when I checked my wallet and saw a balance of zero, that the horror sank in. My 2.5 BTC, worth over $150,000, was gone. The scammer had drained it through a series of rapid transactions, scattering it across the blockchain like digital dust in the wind.
I was devastated. My dream of homeownership vanished in a click, and I felt like a fool. Days blurred into a haze of panic and regret until I stumbled upon GrayHat Hacks online. Their testimonials spoke of miracles, st0len crypt0 recovered, lives restored. Desperate, I reached ou to them. They explained that while Bitc0in’s blockchain is public, tracing st0len funds is like finding a needle in a haystack. But they had the tools: proprietary software that could analyze transaction patterns, identify wallet clusters, and potentially link the scammer’s address to an exchange where the funds might be frozen.
GrayHat Hacks dove into the blockchain, following the trail of my st0len Bitc0in as it hopped from wallet to wallet. They used advanced clustering algorithms to group addresses likely controlled by the same entity, narrowing down the scammer’s footprint. Then came the breakthrough: one of the wallets was tied to a known exchange. It was a tense few hours, but I eventually received the email I’d been praying for, my Bitc0in was recovered.
GrayHat Hacks expertise turned what felt like an impossible loss into a second chance. They even took the time to teach me how to spot phishing scams, ensuring I’d never fall victim again. If you’re reading this, heart pounding after a crypt0 nightmare, know that GrayHat Hacks is the real deal. They’re not just technicians; they’re lifesavers, blending cutting-edge blockchain analysis with a human touch. My dream of a home is back on track, and I owe it all to them.
You can reach out to them via email at grayhathacks@contractor.net or WhatsApp +1 (843) 368-3015
Website https://grayhathacksblog.wixsite.com/grayhathacks
Go to comments