June 2, 2016
Inaugural Utah 7s Rugby Championship This Saturday
Photo: Rugby Utah
Rugby Utah Press Release
Salt Lake City, UT—Rugby Utah, the state’s sanctioned governing body for the sport, is set to host the state’s first 7s rugby state championship this Saturday, June 4th at the Regional Athletic Complex in Salt Lake City, UT.
Matches kick-off at 9am MDT and culminate with the championship match set to kick at 5pm MDT.
In all 8 teams will be vying for in-state bragging rights as Rugby Utah looks to showcase the newest Olympic sport of 7s rugby before the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Olympic Games.
With the rugby growing at unprecedented levels in America, 7s rugby and its Olympic inclusion will not only make America’s fastest-growing sport more exciting but also more relevant to the greater American sports public. And events like the Rugby Utah 7s State Championship will be a major boon to Utah’s rugby-mad populace.
“This is another great step for the entire Utah rugby community,” said Rugby Utah director Kimball Kjar, “These men’s teams are cutting a path for the next generation of rugby player here in Utah and part of the process starts on Saturday. I’m very excited to see which players showcase and which team ends up on top.”
With the rugby-rich community that Utah brags players like Provo-native Maka Unufe, a USA Rugby 7s National USA Rugby 7s National Team stalwart and possible 2016 Olympian Make Unufe began his road to Rio in Provo. Others will look to emulate Unufe by showcasing at this weekend’s Rugby Utah 7s State Championship.
Team member and possible 2016 Olympian, will begin their Olympic journey through this and other similar events held in Utah.
The 8 teams will start their respective pool play at 9am with the knock-out rounds kicking-off in the early afternoon before the champion team is crowned later in the early evening.
In Pool A are of some of Utah’s stalwart rugby clubs in the forms of Park City Haggis, Salt Lake Spartans and West Valley Lions with newcomer Royals joining the 7s competition.
Pool B has another local stalwart club in the form of the Salt Lake Gladiators which is not to be out done by newcomer club Utah Brothers. An amalgamated men’s team from the rugby hotbed of St. George , UT will take the field as the aptly-named Southern Utah 7s.
And the Rugby Utah ODA 7s program will enter a “Selects” side in Pool B as the program looks to identify talent and prepare for the USA Rugby 7s National Qualifiers that begin later this month.
Admission to the Rugby Utah 7s State Championship is $5 per person with youth 12 and under FREE.
A full schedule and team list for the Rugby Utah 7s State Championship can be found at https://www.rugbyutah.com/high-performance/rugby-utah-state-7s-championship/.
