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The International Rugby Board has announced the pools and match schedule for the eight-team rugby sevens tournament to be played at the World Games in Kaohsiung, Chinese Taipei, on 24-25 July 2009.

Newly-crowned IRB Sevens World Series champions South Africa head one pool and series runners-up and defending World Games champions Fiji the other in a strong line-up featuring nations from six continents. Both have named strong squads for the event, which is meant for sports that are not currently contested in the Olympic Games.

South Africa kick off their campaign against the hosts Chinese Taipei and also face tough matches on day one against World Series regulars USA and Portugal.

Fiji play the first match of the tournament against Hong Kong and then face Japan, the Sevens gold medallists at the 2006 Asian Games in Doha, as well as Argentina, who finished fifth on the grand prix-style World Series and runners-up at Rugby World Cup Sevens 2009.

“The Sevens tournament at the World Games has always proven successful and this year we are particularly excited that the competition is being held in Asia,” said IRB President Bernard Lapasset.

"Rugby is reaching out there to new young audiences in a rapidly developing market for our sport. We are looking forward to what promises to be an exciting tournament.”

South Africa were the most consistent side in the world this season, winning four Cup titles en route to their first Series title with outstanding talents such as Mpho Mbiyozo, Frankie Horne, Mzwandile Stick, Gio Aplon, Robert Ebersohn and Renfred Dazel, all of whom are contracted Sevens players and set to play in Kaohsiung.

“The World Games is something that we are really looking forward to,” said Mpho Mbiyozo. “My teammates and I anticipate that being in Kaohsiung, competing for a medal with top level athletes from around the world and experiencing a truly international sporting event will be an inspiring experience.

“We all aspire to compete at the very highest level on the world’s biggest sporting stages and we believe that the World Games gives us a sense of what we might experience at the Olympic Games.

"We wholly support Rugby’s bid for re-inclusion in the Olympic Programme and hope to have an opportunity to compete at that level in 2016.”

The competition promises to be intense. South Africa, Fiji and Argentina are three of the four countries who won Cup titles on the World Series during the 2008/09 season, while USA reached a first ever semi final and Portugal two Cup quarter finals.

“The Rugby Sevens tournament has grown to become a highlight of the World Games sporting programme, providing an exciting spectacle for fans and participants alike," said Ron Froehlich, President of the International World Games Association.

"The inclusion of some of the world’s best Sevens teams from every corner of the world will broaden the Games’ global appeal even further.”

World Games Pools:

Pool A: South Africa, Portugal, USA, Chinese Taipei

Pool B: Fiji, Argentina, Japan, Hong Kong