By Ashley J. Williams 
Naya Tupper, one of the most famous players in American rugby, will finish her career after the Paris Olympics. With the Eagles Sevens women’s team, she has a good chance of winning a medal, maybe a gold medal.
“Two years ago, in our strategic plan, we were talking about the two biggest growth opportunities – in the United States and in women’s football,” said Alan Gilpin.
The journey begins in earnest: DC begins the countdown to the rugby World Cup in the United States Detailed
In announcing his decision, Tupper said that the preparation for his “second Olympiad as second captain”, so to speak, “was as simple as possible”, and at the same time, planning my retirement from the sport was quick to make sure that I enjoy these last moments with my team, while combining the importance of getting a gold medal and the fact that I
This is the life of a rugby player participating in the Olympic Games: the difficulties are great and the financial reward is low. Like most Americans, Tupper didn’t grow up in the sport. In high school he was an All-American track and field star, and in college he became passionate about rugby and became a defender. In eight years he has played seven matches, including 15 internationals, and now, at the age of 29, he has to play a second match.
“The preparation was really good,” Tupper told the Guardian before going on tour to collect before the games. “We brought a U-18 youth team from an American high school. AMERICAN. United States. with us so that we can train against faster and more stable players. It has really expanded our knowledge on the field, our skills, our impact on defense and offense when we compete with people who are faster, stronger and cooler than them.
Like Kevon Williams, captain of the men’s team who is also preparing for a second Olympic match at the head of a team with a more difficult draw in the group, Tupper said that Paris would feel that these are its first real matches since Tokyo 2020 was played a year after thanks to recent times. there are no crowds in the stadiums.
“Realizing that we will really have fans cheering for us makes it even more exciting,” Tupper said. “Realizing that my family will be there makes it even more inspiring. To know that it is really important for us to perform well there so that our organization can prepare for Los Angeles in 2028.
“It’s a lot of pressure, but it’s important. So, I hope we will go there and win a gold medal, and this time we will have a really complete experience. I can’t wait to do it.”
In the future, I will say that Tupper, nicknamed “Naya in Fiji”, will continue to receive the Naya Tupper Scholarship, which is offered by the OMBAC Wallabies Youth Rugby Club in San Diego to provide financial support to young players.
When Tupper was asked which of the Eagles he should pay attention to in Paris, especially during the group match against Japan, Brazil and France, he chose Ilona Maher, a power hitter widely known on social media, and “me, Sammy Sullivan, Christie Kirche… And I mean, from the point of view of the new face, I think Stephanie Rovetti will surprise some people with her speed.
Rovetti is a basketball player of category “D1” at ubac. She came here at an older age, normal for girls, and managed to get a place on the Olympic list. I think she will have amazing results.”
Williams is doing amazing things for the Eagles men’s team, and Tupper is doing the same for the women. He played college football and this is also his second game. At 33, she could also be her Last, unless Williams decides to play as a player of the Great Eagles, Perry Baker, two-time world champion, who will now go to her third Olympics until the age of 30.
Kevon Williams plays for the United States team against Canada during the 2021 Olympic Games in Tokyo. Photograph: Siphiwe Sibeko / Reuters
In Paris, Williams will take the helm of a team that faces a difficult draw: first the French, then Fiji and Uruguay. Get over that and New Zealand, South Africa and Argentina will probably end up in the playoffs.
Fiji won the seventh Olympic men’s gold medal in 2016 and 2021, but this time the biggest challenge may represent the hosts. At the Stade de France, they will use Antoine Dupont, the best rugby player in the world, who is used to leading the blue in 15 matches in this impressive stadium.
“I don’t want to say that I’m taking it with suspicion,” said Williams, who certainly wouldn’t if he was playing in the band with Dupont. “At the moment, France is the best team in the world. In the moments when we lost them, in the moments when we failed and in the moments when we defeated them, we realized that we did well.
Antoine Dupont will bring hope to Paris. Photograph: Patrick T. Fallon/AFP / Getty Images
“The person who people call the best player in the world will play in this team and he is certainly a great player. But we will support each other and look for certain opportunities, and we understand that in this game it is sometimes important to be sure that we will try harder than against them.
Seven batches last seven minutes each. A lot of things, including Olympic gold, may depend on the follish bounce of the oval ball.
Dupont had a staggering success with his seven-point transition, but the other great Australian forward, Michael Hooper, failed to get his way. When Williams was asked what she thought of the big names competing for Olympic glory year after year without performing on the circuit of seven years ago, she said: “It’s kind of a respite. I think it depends on the position.