Sevens
Rugby Sevens at the 2026 Asian Games saw two exciting days of action at the Paloma Mizuho Rugby Stadium in Japan – and despite several emerging nations showing promise, Asia’s most developed rugby nations ultimately delivered.
Hong Kong China and Japan they won gold in both the men’s and women’s events, defeating the People’s Republic of China, which finished with two silver medals in each event.
Despite the disappointment in the gold medal matches, overall it marked a highly successful tournament for the Chinese rugby program, with the women defeating the runner-up Melrose Claymores Thailand 28-0, and the Hong Kong Chinese women’s sevens 24-10 in the pool stage, while the men’s team beat Japan 10-7 to advance to the final.
Finally, the experience of the HSBC SVNS shone through in the women’s competition, with the Sakura Sevens, boasting seven players from the round, remaining unbeaten in the pool stages with back-to-back convincing wins over Singapore, Kazakhstan and Thailand.
Japan were pushed by Hong Kong in the semi-finals before eventually winning 27-12, with Marin Kajiki and Yume Hirano both scoring in the final to beat China 10-5.
Hong Kong China’s women’s team also made significant progress, picking up the bronze medal with a 7-5 win over Thailand, bouncing back from a disappointing result at the Melrose Claymores Invitational at the Hong Kong Sevens earlier this year.
Meanwhile, the men’s tournament proved to be a significant step forward for the men’s side, with several of their players eyeing 2027. Rugby World Cup next year in Australia.
Passing through Uzbekistan, Malaysia and China in Group A, the men’s team from Hong Kong China also did so without, impressively, conceding a point in the pool stages.
However, many eyes were on Group B, with the Japan men’s team in tough competition with South Korea, both sides progressing to the semi-finals before going down to China and Hong Kong China respectively.
Japan would eventually triumph 17-5 to win the bronze medal match, but the tournament marked a significant step forward for the South Korean men’s team, posing many questions to the top teams.
In the end, after beating South Korea 35-14 in the semi-finals – the only points they conceded all weekend – Hong Kong China proved too much for China in the final.
A brace for Harry Sayers and tries from Juan Eson Mba Oyana and Dafydd Phillips gave the 2022 defending champions some breathing room, their defense ultimately proving to be their biggest weapon to keep the Chinese scoreless and win 26-0.
Hong Kong China will now turn their attention to preparations for the upcoming SVNS 3 tournament as they attempt to qualify for the 2027 Men’s SVNS 2 tournament.
Japan, meanwhile, will begin preparations for the HSBC SVNS 2026-27 season, which is set to begin at the end of next month in Dubai.
