Alan Gilpin: World Rugby CEO on New Zealand Rugby's progress during the Paris Olympics

Several Kiwi rugby stars are representing New Zealand on the world stage in the 2024 Paris Olympics.

The New Zealand women's sevens side have beaten Canada 33-7 and China 43-5 in pool matches at Stade de France on the opening day.

The men's sevens team have finished in fifth, with France taking gold after a 28-7 thumping of Fiji in the final.

World Rugby CEO Alan Gilpin says this year's Olympics has served as a 'coming of age' moment for the sport.

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:01):
News talk z'b All right, let's talk rugby because the
great and good of rugby are in Paris now.

Speaker 2 (00:07):
They're doing that for the sevens.

Speaker 1 (00:09):
The Black Fern sevens, this is the women's side, have
got their Olympic campaign off to a strong start. They've
handledly beaten Canada and China. They have one more pool
match against Fiji overnight tonight out time. As we all
know just so well, things didn't go so well for
us on the men's side of the things. France beat
Fiji for the gold medal. South Africa took the bronze.
We beat South Africa once, but they beat us in

(00:30):
the quarter final. The All Backs ended out placing a
lowly fifth. Watching that game and every game that has
been played in the stud of franz as World Rugby
CEO Alan Gilpin, who joins me.

Speaker 2 (00:41):
Now, Hello Allen, hi Andrew, how are you great? Having
a good time?

Speaker 3 (00:47):
It's been fantastic. Yeah, I've really been some amazing sevens.
We've got amazing crowds, so that we're delighted.

Speaker 1 (00:52):
I was obviously disappointed that the All Back sevens wasn't
in the final, but watching the final, I was amazed.
It was the French men's seven side playing a better
brand of rugby than I'd seen them earlier in the tournament.
They're in front of a massive sellout home crowd sixty
nine thousand people at the start to France. This is
the first gold middle of the whole Olympic Games. How
good an ad for rugby was that?

Speaker 4 (01:17):
Look?

Speaker 3 (01:17):
It was fantastic as you said it was. It was
a great final. A bit of a dream, I guess
in the Paras Olympics to have a home scene when
the first big gold for them, as you say, sixty
nine thousand when the stud to France. We've had that
every every day for the seven so it's a bit
of a coming of age moment I think for rugby
seven's and an.

Speaker 4 (01:33):
Hour off to a great start as you said with
the women's.

Speaker 1 (01:36):
Is that good for sevens? Or do we have too
many nations targeting the Olympic Games but not the yearly circuit?

Speaker 2 (01:42):
Do you see what I mean?

Speaker 1 (01:43):
For instance, DuPont was there for France, but will he
be there next seven the next season in the seven circuit?
You know, is this actually good for sevens or does
it detract from the circuit?

Speaker 3 (01:54):
I think it's great for sevens and the annual seventh
circuit builds up to big moments like this. We've seen
DuPont playing a couple of those events this year. We've
got some other players here now and the women's who
you are normally fifteen aside players who are playing in
the sevens in a big Olympic year, we're going to
see some of those players return to the fifteens game
for a Women's World Cup in England next year. So look,

(02:15):
having the opportunity for players to move back and forward
between sevens and fifteens is important to us and hopefully
we can do more of that going forward.

Speaker 1 (02:22):
Obviously there's a lot of networking happening at the moment
and lots of talking about the future. So what is
the single biggest challenge in your view for rugby today
in twenty twenty four.

Speaker 3 (02:34):
I think, like a lot of sports, we want to
make sure we've got a sport that's successible, that's easy
for fans to access, to enjoy more people to play.
So being relevant, being accessible in a changing media landscape,
I think to fans is the big challenge and sevens
is a great product for that, particularly in markets where
maybe rugby is not as established as it is in
places like, for example, where you are in New Zealand,

(02:55):
so you know sevens is important in that shifting landscape
for us.

Speaker 1 (03:00):
The speed change for fifteen is the rule changes. You've
got three new rule changes coming in. It's about to
make is trying to make the game faster, more free flying.

Speaker 2 (03:08):
Is that working?

Speaker 4 (03:10):
It is?

Speaker 3 (03:10):
And again we're always trying different things, trying to make
sure again the game is as accessible as it can
be to fans, as enjoyable as it can be, as.

Speaker 4 (03:17):
Safe as it can be for people to play.

Speaker 3 (03:19):
So you know those law trials that are going on now,
those changes are about, as you say, making the game quicker,
keeping that continuity, making it exciting for the young fans.

Speaker 1 (03:29):
I would have thought, this is my opinion that the
biggest challenge facing rugby right now is the battle against
head injuries and what that does to parents who then
decide whether the kids are going to play.

Speaker 2 (03:40):
Would you agree with that? And how's that battle against
the head injuries going.

Speaker 3 (03:45):
The welfare and safety players is always our number one priority,
and we're always looking to make the game safer but
keep all those inherent qualities of rugby all the things
that make rugby special, which is inherently a contact sport,
a sport that involves, you know, people tackling people, having
those those contact moments and those those collision moments, if
you like. And I think you know, I wouldn't say

(04:06):
we're winning that battle, because you never win that battle.
But we're making sure that we are improving in most
parts of the world. In the community game, the tackle
height now is lower than it's been before. That's certainly
having an impact and as you say, ultimately trying to
reassure parents that whilst there is contact in the game,
the games as safe as it can be for their
for their boys and girls to play.

Speaker 2 (04:25):
Finally, well, the Black Ferns win the gold.

Speaker 4 (04:28):
They started fantastically yesterday. They look in great shape.

Speaker 3 (04:32):
You know, the women's Stevens will be as competitive as
the men's was. You've got obviously the Black Ferns, the Australians,
France again, USA, Canada all looking good.

Speaker 4 (04:41):
So I think those are the sort of teams that
will be in the mix.

Speaker 3 (04:43):
We'll see the quarter final matches here tonight after the
last round of pool matches. The Black Ferns have already
made it through to the quarter finals, going to avoid
what happened with their male colleagues and not lose that
quarter final. That's the key obviously then to getting into
a metal match. So I think they're in great shape.

Speaker 1 (04:59):
Great stuf enjoys up and not too much. Alan gilpen
is the World Rugby CEO.

Speaker 4 (05:03):
For more from Hither Dupless Ee Alan Drive, listen live
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Speaker 3 (05:07):
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