Stellenbosch University (SU) and Maties Sport will be hosting the FISU World University Championship Rugby Sevens, set to take place from 4 to 6 September at the Danie Craven Stadium.
The International University Sports Federation (FISU), is the world governing body for university and student-athlete sports.
The stage is set, and final preparations are under way at the Danie Craven Stadium, Stellenbosch, which will host the FISU World University Championship Rugby Sevens. PHOTO: Kuhle Mangana
Close to 200 student-athletes across 17 men’s and women’s teams, representing 14 countries around the world, are expected to compete, said Drikus Hancke, head of rugby at Maties Sport.
Teams represent their respective countries, rather than individual universities, said Hancke.
“The players are student-athletes who meet the FISU eligibility requirements and are selected through their national university sport structures,” he said.
Maties Sport won the right to host, after a “formal bidding and attribution process”, said Hancke.
“There has subsequently been extensive collaboration between Stellenbosch University, Maties Sport, University Sport South Africa (USSA), FISU, World Rugby, and a range of other stakeholders and partners,” said Hancke.
What makes this sporting event interesting is that different rugby cultures and playing styles will be coming together, while all the participants share the experience of balancing high-level sport with university studies, he added.
Counting down the days until the start of the FISU World University Championship Rugby Sevens that will take place at the Danie Craven Stadium, Stellenbosch. PHOTO: Kuhle Mangana
“The biggest challenge was us selecting the team, especially with the group that we have in South Africa, the quality of players. We started with 24 players, then we had to cut it to 12,” said Lwandile Ngqwala, manager of the Team South Africa (SA) men’s sevens side.
Speaking on the balance of being a student-athlete, Ngqwala said that USSA understands that these players are students first. The sporting body co-ordinated with each athlete’s university to ensure arrangements are in place to make up for any missed tests or assessments.
According to Ngqwala, there is a lot of excitement in the camp.
“We know what we have according to our strengths. We have the quality of players to take us there,” he said.
Team SA’s women’s side will be led by coach Aneesah Adams, who is also the head coach of the Women’s Rugby team at Maties.
“These players have worked incredibly hard to get here, and now they get the opportunity to represent Maties and South Africa on an international stage,” said Adams.
Sevens is a fast, brutal, and physical game, giving little time to recover, said Adams.
“Our conditioning has therefore been about preparing the players to repeat high-intensity efforts – to sprint, defend, make tackles, get back up and do it again,” said Adams.
“We want our players to believe that women’s rugby at Maties can take them places,” she said.
Crews assembled infrastructure on the field at the Danie Craven Stadium, in preparation for the upcoming FISU World University Championship Rugby Sevens. PHOTO: Kuhle Mangana
For Maties Sport, hosting the event demonstrates their capability to facilitate major international university sporting events and to further position Stellenbosch as a destination for high-performance sport, said Hancke.
“Ultimately, we hope athletes leave Stellenbosch having grown both as rugby players and as student-athletes, while taking with them a memorable experience of Stellenbosch University and South Africa,” he said.
The opening ceremony for the championship will be at the Danie Craven Stadium, Stellenbosch, at 19:00 on 3 September.