Rugby 7s Set to Return to Tokyo Olympics

An accomplished attorney, Graham R. Taylor joined San Francisco, California’s Marquis Advisory in 2008, and continues to lead the international business consultancy as principal. Outside of his law and business activities, Graham R. Taylor is an avid sports fan. Formerly from Australia, he is an especially keen fan of rugby.

When the Tokyo Olympics take place in the summer of 2021, the Fiji men’s team and Australian women’s team will each seek to become the first nations to defend gold medals in rugby 7s. Only one nation has defended gold in any rugby discipline. The sport was featured in a number of early Olympic games between 1900 and 1924, with France and Australia claiming gold medals, followed by the United States winning two golds before a controversial finish ended the sport’s inclusion in the Olympic program for nearly a century.

Rugby returned to the world’s largest international sporting competition in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, to great success. The final was watched by 15,000 fans, despite the sport having no presence in Brazil, and provided a boost to the country’s national program. Fiji bested Great Britain for the gold medal in the men’s event, while South Africa took bronze. On the women’s side, Australia took gold, while New Zealand and Canada claimed silver and bronze medals, respectively.