Rio de Janeiro 2016: Women's Rugby Sevens

As seen in this gem of a clip from the Seven Network, the Australian women made history in the inaugural Rugby Sevens at Rio by claiming the first gold medal ever awarded in the sport.

Having won the 2015–16 world series, the Aussies were the pre-Olympic favourites. They began the pool stages with big wins over Colombia (53–0) and Fiji (36–0), followed by a tight encounter with the USA tied at 12 all. The team proceeded to the knockout round with solid victories over Spain (24–0) in the quarterfinals and Canada (17–5) in the semis, setting up an ultimate showdown with trans-Tasman rivals New Zealand.

In a match format lasting only 20 minutes, the Aussies scored four great tries – with standout performances from Ellia Green, Sharni Williams and Shannon Parry – beating the New Zealanders by a comfortable margin.

As the segment explains, the Women’s Rugby Sevens is a relatively new sport in Australia and what makes this team's achievement particularly special is that many of its members had been recruited from other sports – and some had only learnt to tackle in the prior four years.

The broadcast includes a variety of memorable event moments – highlights from the match, on-field interviews with the athletes, the medal ceremony, and the Australian team celebrating after the game (with responses from family members) – as well as the emotional post-match haka performance from the Kiwi team.

The broadcast also edits in some unexpected moments such as the interview with Hollywood movie star Matthew McConaughey, who admits that he is a big fan of Australian sports. Undoubtedly one of the great Olympics moments, this was a win both for Australia and a win for women’s sport.

Excerpt from Seven News Brisbane, 9 August 2016.