HONG KONG--(Marketwire - Feb 28, 2013) - As part of the upcoming Cathay Pacific / HSBC Hong Kong Sevens, the Hong Kong Rugby Football Union (HKRFU) (www.hkrugby.com) and Serevi Rugby (www.serevirugby.com) are partnering to provide local area youth players with rugby training camps.
The camps will be led by international rugby legends including the "King of Sevens" Waisale Serevi, IRB World Sevens Series record points scorer, Ben Gollings, and IRB World Sevens Series record try scorer Santiago Gomez Cora.
"Ben, Santi, and I made our names in Hong Kong and it feels great to return and give back to the young players of a city that embraced us," said Waisale Serevi, Coach and Co-founder of Serevi Rugby. "Without Hong Kong, there is no Waisale Serevi, so I'm happy to partner with HKRFU to develop youth skills in the territory."
The programme combines both free introductory programmes and "taster sessions" to give kids an introduction to the game, as well as specific high-performance training camps to help nurture Hong Kong's future stars.
"Taster Sessions" for boys and girls ages 5-16 with Serevi Rugby coaches (including Serevi and Gollings) will be held on the morning of Saturday, March 16th at Hong Kong's King's Park to coincide with the announcement of the HKRFU Men's and Women's National Teams participating in the Hong Kong Sevens (March 22-24) and the Hong Kong Women's Rugby Sevens (March 22nd at Hong Kong Football Club). Taster Sessions for players U6 to U8 will be held from 9:00am - 10:30am and U9 to U12 from 10:30am - noon. Registration is HK$100 and includes on-field training of core rugby skills and game play.
The programme also puts Serevi Rugby's coaching legends to good use from a high performance standpoint with an intensive two-day camp focused on skills development. Jointly designed by Serevi Rugby and the HKRFU Performance Department to compliment HKRFU's high performance programme, the two-day camp will focus on core skills, decision-making, and game execution.
Held at King's Park on Monday, March 25th through Tuesday, March 26th, the High Performance Training Camp is progression-based, with players segmented by age and ability. Serevi Rugby coaches will focus on building young players' core rugby skills and ability to execute under increasing amounts of game-like pressure.
Each day's session will include afternoon match play and each player will have an opportunity to work directly with Serevi, Gollings, and Gomez Cora along with Serevi coaches from around the world. Registration for this elite session is HK$1,400 which includes more than 10 hours of elite coaching, lunch each day, a camp shirt and gift bag.
Dai Rees, HKRFU Head of Performance and Coaching commented on the upcoming programmes saying, "As our domestic and international programmes continue to grow, the HKRFU partnership with Serevi Rugby will capitalize on the high awareness of the game to offer new players a chance to improve their understanding and enjoyment of the game with three true legends of sevens in Waisale Serevi, Ben Gollings and Santiago Gomez Cora. From a High Performance standpoint, the HKRFU Serevi Rugby programme will help us develop the next generation of players who will hopefully ensure Hong Kong's sevens future remains bright."
"This partnership is all about building the skills of local players, providing them access to our vast on-field and coaching experience, particularly techniques that we've developed from years of game experience," said Ben Gollings, Serevi Rugby Coach and four-time Hong Kong Sevens winner. "There's no higher ground in Sevens rugby than Hong Kong, so coming back is a thrill for me."
For more information and to register for the training sessions please visit: www.hkrugby.com.
About Serevi™ Rugby
Headquartered in Seattle, Serevi™ is focused on growing the game of rugby in North America and beyond. Serevi™ offers on-field programming for coaches and players through the youth to elite spectrum. It also offers performance and casual rugby apparel to players and fans of the sport. For more information on Serevi Rugby, including upcoming player and coach training sessions visit www.serevirugby.com.
Contact Information:
Jaime Quick
206-229-5183