IRB Sevens Championship …
GUYANA has been drawn in pool `A’ of the International Rugby Board’s Sevens Championships which is billed for Las Vegas, USA, on February 13 and 14.

According to a release, Guyana has been drawn with New Zealand, Australia and France, while Pool `B’ will see Fiji, South Africa, USA and Canada compete for the top spot in that group.

Pool `C’ brings together Samoa, Kenya, Scotland and Chile while Pool `D’ comprises England, Argentina, Wales and Japan.

New Zealand are the series leaders while Fiji currently lie second in the Series, 12 points adrift of New Zealand after reaching the George final and top Pool B.

There are just 15 days to go until the event which is the largest rugby event in North America and the fourth stop on the global IRB Sevens World Series.

The February 13-14 event follows on from the NZI Sevens in Wellington, New Zealand, the previous weekend.

“The general response to the event from fans, media and sponsors has gone to another level since we announced the move to Vegas,” said Tournament Director and former US Eagles captain Dan Lyle.

“Vegas is iconic; it’s world class in terms of the sporting spectacles that it consistently lays on, and that mirrors everything else that they do in the city in terms of entertainment, service, standards and so forth.

“That on top of the Olympic announcement for Sevens means that people are genuinely interested now in what we are doing, which leads us to believe that we really are going to have an incredible event.”

If the USA event has benefited from the move to Vegas, the whole of Rugby received arguably its biggest ever boost in October when Sevens was voted overwhelmingly by the IOC onto the sporting programme for the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro.

“The Olympics is part of the language that the American people speak. Rugby was a part of the peripheral language that they spoke but now becomes a part of that mainstream,” added Lyle.

“In terms of interest in the tournament overall, I’d say there’s been seven or eight times more interest in the build-up this year than at this same stage in previous years, when we were in Los Angeles or San Diego, and when Sevens was not yet accepted into the Olympic family.

“It’s going to be interesting to see how that extra interest translates into ticket sales, but we’re definitely ahead of where we were (last year) by some 20 or 30 percent.”

Aside from 44 action-packed, 14-minute games of Sevens rugby, the 2010 USA Sevens Fan Festival will also provide spectators with all the fun and entertainment that is now synonymous with Sevens away from the pitch.

The family-friendly Festival will provide activities for both adults and children, including games, music and sporting activities.

“We’ve travelled the World Series over the past few years in order to bring the very best of what the other events do to our own local fans, and I think it’s fair to say that there will be something for everyone in Vegas.

“Of course, first and foremost, we need to make sure that the sport goes off well and that the athletes are taken care of and have everything they need, and also the fans.

Defending champions Argentina face a tough challenge after being drawn in the same Pool as 2009 runners up England and world champions Wales for the inaugural event in Las Vegas.

“It is exciting to be holding the fourth leg of this year’s Series in Las Vegas for the first time. I am sure that the teams and travelling supporters will be treated to a warm welcome, a festival atmosphere and what promises to be the best USA Sevens to date,” said IRB chairman Bernard Lapasset.