Kolinisau and Tuwai committed to safeguarding Fiji’s Olympic legacy at Paris 2024

The Fiji men’s rugby sevens team will take it “one game at a time” and focus on the legacy they want to leave at the Paris Olympics.

The double Olympic champions of rugby sevens showcased their talent and style to the world in the early hours of Thursday morning (NZ time) as they defeated Uruguay and the United States in their group matches.

The win qualified them for the quarter-finals, alongside Argentina, Australia, Ireland and New Zealand.

But head coach Osiah Koliniso and captain Jerry Tuwai said they will continue to focus on each play on the field, respect all teams in the competition and remain humble.

Fiji opened its title defence with a 40-12 win over Uruguay, then put on a rugby extravaganza of attacks and clearances to beat the United States 38-12.

“There is a lot of competition between us in these games,” Tuwai said.

“In every game, anything can happen, we just have to take it game by game.”

The double Olympic gold medalist said they cannot underestimate any team as all are strong and hungry to win.

“We respect all teams, especially New Zealand,” he said.

“We’ve fought so hard to win these games.

“France is the better team and we come to their home ground and they will do well, Argentina too, Australia is here too. For us we have a legacy to defend in Paris.”

Coach Colinisso said that legacy is defending the 2016 and 2020 Olympic gold medals.

He led the team to what was then Fiji’s first gold medal in the Sevens at the 2016 tournament.

“Success here is about defending our heritage,” he said.

“I know we have to reach the level that the 2016 boys and 2020 boys set, and it’s a tough record, but the boys know what’s key and we plan to keep that record going.

“Of course, we hope that when everyone talks about Olympic Rugby Sevens they will also be talking about Fiji Sevens.”

Koliniso said he was happy to see the players’ physical fitness improve to the set standard and show the Fijian style.

“We just set standards and values,” he said of the changes to the team, especially after the games against Uruguay and the United States.

“We were in good physical shape and we wanted to play the Fijian style, which is fast-paced, risky and requires a lot of physicality to do it. We brought that in.”

“The kids have adapted really well and are starting to do that, and we’re getting back to the energy that we’ve known.”

But the team still had to beat hosts France in their final group game, who were the clear favourites and had a packed Stade de France stadium cheering them on.

France tied the United States 12-12 in their first match before defeating Uruguay 19-12.

A win over Fiji would get them into the quarter-finals, but a defeat would do nothing.

If the Americans win their final group game and France loses to Fiji, it could be disastrous for the hosts.

Tuwai said they were wary of France at home, especially after the French side beat them in the HSBC Sevens Series earlier this year.

First day results

The other significant results from the first day of play were Ireland and New Zealand winning two games each in Group A.

Terry Kennedy continued his scoring record for Ireland as they beat South Africa 10-5 in a tense Group A match before taking the points with a comfortable 40-5 win over Japan.

New Zealand beat Japan 40-12 and then defeated South Africa 17-5 in a fierce battle.

Australia and Argentina also advanced to the knockout rounds with two wins each in Group B.

Australia opened the tournament with a narrow 21-14 win over Samoa, before beating Kenya 12-7.

Argentina easily defeated Kenya with two straight wins and beat Samoa 28-12.

Samoa has lost both of its games so far and looks set to miss out on the quarterfinals. They will face Kenya in their final group match.

The quarter-finals will be played on Friday (NZ time), with the semi-finals and gold medal final on Sunday.

Full results from Thursday morning’s group games: New Zealand 17 South Africa 5, Ireland 40 Japan 5, Fiji 38 United States 12, France 19 Uruguay 12, Argentina 28 Samoa 12, Australia 21 Kenya 7, New Zealand 40 Japan 12, Ireland 10 South Africa 5, Fiji 40 Uruguay 12, France 12 United States 12, Argentina 31 Kenya 12, Australia 21 Samoa 14.