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International Wheelchair Rugby Qualifiers kick off in Ireland this week

Excitement is building in Ireland as the International Wheelchair Rugby Federation’s (IWRF) European qualifiers get underway in the country this week.
From February 7-9, Gormanston College on the outskirts of Dublin, will host the Czech Republic, Italy, the Netherlands and Ireland, who are hoping to earn one of the two available spots left at the IWRF European Championship in Antwerp, Belgium, in August.
The IRB enjoys a close working relationship with the International Wheelchair Rugby Federation, having signed a memorandum of understanding in 2010 to work together on matters of mutual interest.
IRB Chairman Bernard Lapasset is backing what he sees as a growing sport.
"Wheelchair Rugby is a successful Paralympic sport and is growing all over the world in terms of participation and popularity thanks to its blend of world-class competition and entertainment," said Lapasset.
"I'm very much looking forward to what promises to be a spectacular competition in Antwerp later this year and an event that promises to springboard the sport to new audiences and fans, and I wish all competitors the very best of luck in Ireland this week."
Irish Wheelchair Association of Sport Director Nicky Hamill is looking forward to the qualifiers.
“We expect all the games to be closely fought and hope to earn one of the qualifying places. In the past the Dutch team has been our biggest challenge. However, over the past few years there has been very little between ourselves and the Czech Republic, as they've always been very competitive games. Italy is relatively new to the game and we have not played them before, but we are taking nothing for granted there either. I suspect they are waiting in the long grass to take a few scalps!” said Hamill.
Wheelchair Rugby was first played in Italy just over two years ago in the Veneto region, the same area where the country’s national Rugby side started 100 years ago. This is the first sanctioned tournament that the Italians have attended, and it will earn them a position on the IWRF world ranking list.
Wheelchair Rugby is a mixed team sport for male and female quadriplegic athletes and is played on a standard basketball court. It combines elements of Rugby, basketball and handball as players compete in teams of four to carry the ball across the opposing team's goal line. Played in four quarters of eight minutes each, the team with more points at the end is declared the winner. Contact between wheelchairs is permitted. In fact, it is an integral part of the sport as players use their chairs to block and hold opponents

Editors Notes:
You can follow the highlights and scores from Dublin on the IWRF’s Twitter page at www.twitter.com/iwrf or further information on the sport can be found at http://www.iwrf.com/.
Further information:
Eoin McHugh, IRB Tournament Communications Manager, +353-86-0212-196, email eoin.mchugh@irb.com

Source: www.irb.com

Freeing up the human spirit to achieve a healthy body and a healthy mind. If I am asked to phrase what Olympism is from the top of my head, that is how I will define what the movement is about.

Saying that sport can make a positive difference is a tired cliché that no longer catches people’s attention far less fire their imagination. When you tell someone the mission of the Olympic movement is to make a positive difference through sport, it doesn’t grab their attention.

Grabbing and maintaining attention for the right reasons is a critical success factor and a strategic imperative. Almost every sport organisation in T&T is in a battle for relevance, legitimacy and I dare say survival.  Every single one must find different—some say new ways of obtaining financial resources, generating revenue, attracting and keeping competent, dynamic and skilled human resources and standing out, amid the clutter and distractions. Many are struggling, and in some cases fighting a losing battle  to rebrand, re image and redefine who they are, what they represent and do.

In a world where there is so much going on. If you aren’t meeting people where they want you to meet them, an organisation or club is literally doomed. Irrelevance and oblivion can’t be far behind.

I am sorry for organisations and individuals who are stuck in traditional mode. Sport organisations must as a matter of survival re-invent themselves. It’s about reaching out to stakeholders where they have needs. Unless you have a clear understanding of how your organisation can adapt to provide the service and meet the needs of  stakeholders making progress is not realistic—however you choose to define progress- standing still or falling behind is not progress.

To succeed in moving forward, you have to want to develop new ideas and drive change. If you’re not one of those people, you’re going to hate what’s going on in the modern world and you won’t be effective. To many sport leaders are just trying to hang on, but it’s only a matter of time before—the games up- and people realise they don’t know what they’re doing. It’s getting harder to fake it.

By way of example, what are the options facing a National Olympic committee?  if one were to look at the Olympic Charter there are a number of objectives set out for the Olympic movement. Based on resources and strategic priorities, different national Olympic committees make choices based on an assessment of their operating environment. They interpret their offerings to meet the needs of their stakeholders.

For instance just last week, bpTT, the T&T Olympic committee (TTOC) and Michael Johnson performance centre launched a new programme. Like everything else there were some fears, concerns and potential issues raised by sport stakeholders.

Human nature being what it is people tend to read into things motives and intentions that they themselves may have rather than conduct an objectively analysis. The fact of the matter is the TTOC would have been focusing on building capacity through education and development with significant intensity for the past 17 years and the Michael Johnson, BpTT programme is the next phase in an ongoing continuum. The TTOC can’t sit or stand idly  by and ask ”who moved the cheese?” The global sport and Olympic landscape  changes almost hourly if not daily and it is the duty, obligation and responsibility of the TTOC to remain alive to its operating environment. Choices have to be made in a fast paced environment. Standing still is not an option.

Allowing any organisation to be boxed into a narrow corner is a recipe for failure and oblivion. The TTOC and NSOs must create the reality they want and desire.

By Brian Lewis

Source: www.guardian.co.tt

A $10 billion (£6 billion/€7 billion) tender to build the world's largest airport in Istanbul was officially launched today, with the promise that it will be operational if the Turkish city hosts the 2020 Olympics and Paralympics if its bid is successful.

The six-runway airport, which will be built on 77 million square metres of land in the Arnavutköy district of Istanbul, close to the Black Sea coast on the city's European side, will eventually be capable of handling 150 million passengers per year.

That would make it twice the size of Heathrow, currently the world's biggest international airport, and would position Turkey to become a major hub for traffic between Asia, Europe and increasingly Africa.

Flag-carrier Turkish Airlines is expected to make use of the opportunity by nearly doubling its fleet and expanding the destinations it serves by 50 per cent.

The airline, twice selected as the best European airline, posted a 20 per cent rise in passengers last year to 39 million, despite Istanbul's two current airports being stretched to capacity.

It aims to reach 46 million passengers in 2013.

The first phase of consstruction of the new airport is due to be completed by 2016.

It is one of five major infrastructure projects planned in the city as part of Turkey's 2023 Master Plan, the nationwide programme of long-term development.

"The Istanbul 2020 team has continued to learn from our previous four bids; we have listened carefully to the Olympic family and we have extensively studied the successes of London 2012 and other host cities," said Hasan Arat, leader of Istanbul 2020.

"We recognise that effective and efficient transport is critical for a successful Games - starting with a world-class airport.

"The tender opening this week means that we have passed another milestone on our journey; we will continue to work hard to ensure that our ground-breaking transport initiatives will benefit Olympians, Paralympians and the wider Olympic family.

"Just as importantly, Istanbul 2020 would leave a valuable legacy for citizens and guests by making the city one of the most liveable and accessible in the world."

The new airport is the centrepiece of a massive transport infrastructure plan which has seen an $1.5 billion (£1 billion/€1.1 billion) average annual investment in transport infrastructure upgrades since 2005 and a further $15 billion (£9.5 billion/€11 billion) planned to be spent on projects over the next three years.

These projects will significantly reduce congestion and speed up all journey times for Olympic client groups, Turkish officials claim.

Istanbul 2020 has uniquely proposed hosting the Games in two continents; the Haliç Metro bridge, the Marmaray rail tunnel, the Eurasia Bosphorus road tunnel and a third Bosphorus bridge will all be completed before 2020, increasing the number of Bosphorus road and rail crossings to six, they promise.

"As a President of an NOC and an International Federation, I am focussed on the comfort and convenience of the athletes," said Ugur Erdener, President of both the National Olympic Committee of Turkey (NOCT) and World Archery.  

"I am more than confident that this carefully directed investment in Istanbul's transport infrastructure will enhance our ability to deliver a technically outstanding Olympic and Paralympic Games in 2020.

"Our proposed four competition zones across two continents have been selected to highlight Istanbul's unique location, bridging Europe and Asia, as well as to guarantee athletes an average travel time of just 16 minutes between our iconic venues."

The winning tender for Istanbul's third airport is due be named in May.

A court in India today framed charges against former Delhi 2010 Commonwealth Games chairman Suresh Kalmadi for allegedly cheating, conspiring and causing a loss of more than Rs.90 crore (£11 million/$17 million/€13 million) to the public exchequer in a Commonwealth Games related bribery case.

The Special Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) saw Kalmadi and nine others, including former Delhi 2010 Commonwealth Games secretary general Lalit Bhanot, all appear in court.

The court has ordered a fast-tracking of the case and hearings will be held four times a week, with the first hearing set for Thursday (February 7) when the prosecution will present a list of witnesses and the time schedule when they can come for recording statements.

If convicted of both corruption and criminal conspiracy charges, Kalmadi, the former President of the Indian Olympic Association, could face up to a life term in prison.

Besides Kalmadi and Bhanot, the others charged are V K Verma, Surjit Lal, A S V Prasad and M Jayachandran who all worked for Delhi 2010 in senior positions.

The CBI had filed a charge sheet against Kalmadi and the others, accusing them of illegally awarding a contract to install the timing, scoring and results (TSR) system for the 2010 Commonwealth Games to Swiss Timing at inflated rates.

The charges are being framed under various provisions of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and the Prevention of Corruption (PC) Act against the accused.

Besides cheating and conspiracy, the accused will also be charged with forgery and criminal misconduct by public servants.

The key focus in court was on Kalmadi, who was released on bail in January last year after nine months in custody shortly after being was sacked as Delhi 2010 chairman in April 2011 after the corruption allegations were made against him.

The CBI began a full-fledged investigation and some of Kalmadi and his aides in 2011, where the former Delhi 2010 chairman was questioned three times.

The CBI also raided his homes and offices in Delhi and Pune to gather evidence while he was arrested after a fourth round of interrogation.

Kalmadi was also indicted by the Enforcement Directorate (ED), which accused him of violating foreign exchange laws while making payments to a London-based firm that he hired for the Queen's Baton Relay in 2009.

Kalmadi's lawyers have continued to maintain that he was not aware of the details of any of the corrupt deals that took place.

By Tom Degun

Source: www.insidethegames.com

Former field athlete, coach and administrator Aubrey Edwards died on Tuesday at the age of 76 at the Eric Williams Medical Sciences Complex, after a bout with illness.

Edwards represented T&T in the 1950s and 1960s in several sports, including javelin, shot put and discus, at the regional and international level. He was a former president of the T&T Table Tennis Association (TTTTA).

Edwards is survived by his wife Verna and their children Astra, Aleena, Andrew and Aaron, all of whom are current or past top table tennis players in local and international competition. Verna was also a former top track athlete.

Souce: www.guardian.co.tt

Cuba is ready to ditch a draconian rule preventing boxers turning professional which has lasted more than 50 years so they can sign up to join the International Boxing Association's (AIBA) World Series of Boxing (WSB) and AIBA Pro Boxing (APB).

Professional boxing was effecitvely banned in Cuba in 1962 because the country's former leader Fidel Castro regarded it as both corrupt and corrupting, while authorities there deemed it is too dangerous and unsafe.

But amateur boxing has been one of the most popular and successful sports in the Caribbean island in recent years, and the country is the second most successful boxing nation at the Olympic Games, with an incredible 67 medals, including 34 golds, behind the United States.

But with AIBA looking to turn the sport professional, Cuba looks set to changes its laws to allow fighters to compete in the WSB, which was launched in 2010, and the APB, which will debut later this year.

Both competitions allow fighters to compete professionally while retaining their Olympic eligibility.

The move appears close after AIBA President C K Wu (pictured top, left) travelled to the country this week with WSB chief operating officer Karim Bouzidi and APB managing director Benoit Giran.

In a two-day visit, Wu met with some of Cuba's highest authorities including Cuban Sports and Recreation Institute (INDER) President Christian Jiménez Molina (pictured top, centre) and Cuban Boxing Federation President Alberto Puig de la Barca (pictured top, right) and he now believes a deal is close.

"It has been a very productive visit where I have been able to explain to the authorities in Cuba exactly what the WSB and the APB is," Wu exclusively told insidethegames following the conclusion of the visit.

"To join up, Cuba would need to change their national policy but the meeting went very well and they are very interested in joining.

"There are still some final decisions to be made by Cuba on this but I am confident they will be joining to help the careers of their amateur boxers.

"Cuba is one of the strongest boxing nations in the world so to have them join the WSB and the APB would be a major step for us.

"We cannot say anything for definite, but they are set to internal discuss this and I think we are very close to a deal."

Securing Cuba in the WSB and APB would be a major boost for AIBA in its long-term ambition to stop the world's top boxers going to the traditional professional ranks as they would have access to a huge talent pool that is off limits to professional promoters.

However, Wu played down the fact that the move will have professional promoters worried.

"We are not after confrontation with professional promoters," he said.

"They have their own agenda and we have our own agenda.

"Our agenda is to offer a stable career for fighters after the Olympics and to allow them to compete professionally while also retaining their Olympic eligibility.

"But in the WSB and the APB, we obviously want the highest level of competition.

"Cuba will definitely increase that level of competition so we are in a very positive move after these discussions."

By Tom Degun

Source: www.insidethegames.biz

T&T’s Special Olympics (SOTT) field hockey delegation, led by a hat-trick from Devan Mahadeo, recorded a famous 7-1 crushing victory over the USA in the most valiant of team efforts, when action continued in the 2013 Special Olympics International World Winter Games, South Korea, yesterday.

The team smarted from a disappointing 8-0 defeat at the hands of Hungary, to display a confident, all-rounded effort against the Americans. T&T too, started brightly against the Hungarians, but was unable to sustain the momentum.

Gaitrie Rampersad opened scoring for SOTT, before Mahadeo’s hat-trick, and Marlon Worrel, Michael Johnson and Rishi Ramsumair’s lone effort finished off the USA.

T&T will face Jamaica from 10 am (local time) this morning, while USA will challenge Hungary.

Source: www.guardian.co.tt

Four time Olympic gold medalist Michael Johnson opening the High Performance partnership with TTOC & BP

SPRINTER Kim Collins may pull out of a race in Glasgow this weekend after his brother was shot dead by police.

Collins, 36, who won the World Championship 100 metres title in 2003, was due to go head-to-head with British sprinter Dwain Chambers over 60m at the British International meeting in Glasgow on Saturday.

But his appearance may now be in doubt after his 40-year-old brother Callustus was shot dead by police.

They had been called to a housing project after his estranged wife was found stabbed. She had taken a restraining order out on her husband in November and is recovering in hospital.

Collins hit the headlines at London 2012 when the St Kitts and Nevis Olympic federation pulled their greatest athlete out of the Games as punishment for visiting his wife at a hotel.

A furious Collins—who carried the flag for his country at the Opening Ceremony—said he would never again run for the tiny Caribbean nation after being shown a lack of respect.

Source: www.trinidadexpress.com

THE Government gave $17 million to various groups and persons to prepare for the 2012 London Olympic Games, said Sport Minister, Anil Roberts, in the Senate yesterday.

He was responding to questions raised by Opposition Senator Pennelope Beckles.

The Government’s exact allocation for London 2012 was $17,826,872. Of this the TT Olympic Committee got over $2 million, disbursed in two tranches on March 16 and June 25, 2012, said Roberts.

Some $500,000 was allocated for TT’s Olympic athletes to attend a training camp in Wales before the Olympics.

Through the Ministry of Sport, between August 2011 and July 2012, some $7,185,000 was given to 60 elite athletes. Further, some $3,920,358 was awarded to the under-23 football team in trying to qualify for the Olympics. These funds were disbursed on March 1; April 12, 18 and 24; and July 5, 2012.

Some $1,000,575 was spent on sports psychologists services for elite athletes, disbursed on May 27 and June 17, 2011, and on April 15 and August 15, 2012.

He said $1,617,985 was disbursed to experts in the field of sport training, physiology, bio-mechanics, and conditioning, on June 14, 2011.

The Sports Company of TT disbursed funds totalling $942,870 to athletes in several sports to aid their Olympic preparation. These were sailing ($50,000 given on May 12 and $100,000 given on June/July 2012); swimming ($40,000 given on June/July 2012); cycling ($42,095 in February 2012, $50,716 in March 2012 and $182,114 in July 2012); athletics ($33,000 in April 2012, $325,445 in June 2012, $44,500 in June 2012 and $75,000 in July 2012).

Roberts also replied to another listed question by Beckles as to how much was spent on personnel approved by Cabinet to attend the 2012 Olympics.

Roberts said $182,000 was spent on him as Minister; $68,000 on his Ministry’s Permanent Secretary, Ashwin Creed; and $124,000 on the Director of Physical Education and Sport Division, Dave Bobb. In a supplemental query to the first question, Independent Senator Corrine Baptiste-Mc Knight asked if and how this $17 million sum related to an extra $20 million given to the Ministry under the bill to be debated later that sitting (which re-allocates the spending of some $2.9 billion in Budget 2013).

Roberts promised to look into it. He denied Opposition Senator Faris al-Rawi’s query that the $17 million Olympic allocation was an entirely separate sum to the $20 million variation sought in the bill, saying, “So it’s not a total of $37 million”. Saying he’d just used modern technology to get the details, Roberts sought to clear the air on the amount by explaining that the $20 million was the budgetted figure, but of this only $17 million was actually spent.

However Baptiste-Mc Knight disputed this explanation by saying the document accompanying yesterday’s bill said the $20 million was actually transferred to meet payments for the Olympics and not $17 million.

“Your Ministry has serious problems,” she alleged. Later on Finance Minister, Larry Howai, backed Roberts as being correct saying the bill only dealt with transfers of budgetted amounts from one head of expenditure to another, but not the actual expenditures that would have occurred.

By Sean Douglas

Source: www.newsday.co.tt

Are the T&T Indian Premier League (IPL) cricket stars simply greedy and unpatriotic?

Would any of those who have turned their wrath on the IPL players make the decision that we seem to be forcing the players to make?

Who says it is a club versus country issue?

Are there deeper considerations?

What would we do if placed in a similar situation?

Those of us who only experience elite sport from the outside may have different values and beliefs but for someone whose life and ambitions have been built around striving for excellence in professional and world class elite sport-values and values formation will be in a different order of importance.

It takes talent, commitment, sacrifice and passion, love of sport, hours of practice, above normal mental and emotional strength to compete and be successful at the highest level of sport.

Do people appreciate that sportsmen and women endure their own dark nights when injury or selection deny them the chance to compete. That they owe it to themselves— being a professional athlete is not easy.

You become your sport. It consumes every aspect of your life and your career may last only ten years at most if you are lucky.

Anthony Robbins concurred with the notion that human beings are what they believe when he said in his book ‘Unlimited Power’, beliefs are the commanders to the brain.

Many experts on the subject of human potential have stated that our values are our belief systems about right, wrong, good, and bad. Values reflect what are important to each and every one of us.

Values govern our lifestyles. They determine how you will respond to every experience in life.

The impact of your values is endless and timeless. They define how we respond to situations.

Without an understanding of our values and that of those we interact, lead, manage or work and play with, it is difficult to understand not only our own behaviour but that of others.

Our values may change depending on different influences.

Much of the conflict that countries, organisations and human beings have in life is a result of conflicting values.

All of us have certain values that are more important to us, above anything else.

Unless you know what people value and the importance they place on those values.

We are quick to judge and make pronouncements on what is right or wrong.

To relate effectively to people, we need to know what’s most important to them. It is almost impossible to understand people’s basic behaviour or motivations unless you appreciate the importance of their values.

Many of us have never taken the time to question and confront our own values and the conflicts and contradictions that those values present.

It’s not a matter of right or wrong or about imposing your own values on other people.

It’s important to learn what your values are so you will be able to be at peace with yourself first before you can be at peace with others.

Unless you can address your own values and their conflicts, it is will hamper how you relate to people, lead, manage or mentor them.

We all have a supreme value, the one thing we want most of all in life, in our relationships, work, friends, family, and sport.

There is that one thing that drives us all. Ideas of values may be so different that people who think they have common values may have nothing in common.

When one holds positional authority or leadership it is a deep injustice to the integrity, dignity complexity and profound nature of human interaction to approach conflicts from such a simplistic manner as right and wrong unless you have a hidden agenda and a desired outcome already in mind.

By Brian Lewis

Source: www.guardian.co.tt

With the recent embarrassment of the now disgraced Lance Armstrong, it has made me think of the lengths people will go, to succeed in sport. How many people are getting away with taking substances? How young are kids starting to play around with banned substances? If Armstrong could go under the radar for seven or more years, who else is lurking in the ever growing darkness?

Nowadays with all the rewards that come with sporting success, everyone wants to reach the top. Monetary gains can be huge along with the celebrity that comes with success. If everyone is heading in the same direction and pushing for the same goal, it means the chances of reaching the top are heavily reduced. This can create huge pressure to succeed, whether it be social, school, family or another outside force. Some people will do what ever they can to reach the top, legal or not.

With the cut throat way players are brought in and out of academies, young hopefuls do what they can to impress and remain part of a professional setup. Through the ever growing importance and popularity of rugby in England, competition is fierce. Long-term injuries can see a player dropped from an academy and find it hard to get back in. A player who is seen to be bigger and stronger will stand out more and be more likely to be kept in an academy for longer.

In South Africa, school boy rugby is a stepping stone towards the professional ranks and is fraught with serious pressure and competition. In 2011 four seventeen year olds tested positive for testosterone and other banned substances during Craven week (South Africa’s inter provincial tournament). Only a small sample of players were tested, so numbers  would have been higher if all were tested. This is a clear example of what pressure to succeed can have on a young sportsman.

Closer to home the same thing is happening. Jonny Spelman recently admitted to taking banned substances whilst part of the England under 17 training camp and has now been banned. Before this he picked up a knee injury and subsequently told he would be unable to  play for a minimum of nine months. With the threat of missing out on a contract and even being dropped from the academy he was a part of, he turned to taking a banned substance in order to recover faster and keep his place in the academy system. It was the pressure that lead to this. This situation also raises another question. How easy is it for younger athletes to get hold of such substances?

Crossing the Severn Bridge you can see a fine example of such an issue. A study carried out in 2009 showed that seven out of ten people

in ‘hardcore heavy lifting gyms’ were on steroids. Many taking tablets that are given to cattle to produce more meat. It seems that this has spread into some of the larger universities in Wales where there seems to be a more casual approach to performing enhancing substances. Speaking to people who play rugby in that part of the world, they have all said they know of someone who is doping. With only four regional clubs in Wales, the opportunity to play professionally is minimal. Clearly some people will do anything to make it. Should a more thorough drug testing policy in universities be employed? One Cardiff metropolitan uni student who represented Scotland Students in rugby league was banned in 2010 for taking these substances.

With Human Growth Hormone (HGH) now rising to prominence as the banned substance of choice, and able to flush out of your system quickly, it is very hard to tell who is taking it.

Maybe a restructure of rugby could relieve the pressure and reduce the number of people taking these substances.

It is easy for us to look in at sports from the outside, admiring the athletes and what they achieve. But we are easily shunned away from the dark side of sport. We do not know what goes on behind the closed doors. What is hidden from us, the naive public viewers?

By Henry Fraser

Source: www.inattheside.com

GROS ISLET

Two West Indies cricket legends have applauded Windwards captain Darren Sammy for withdrawing an appeal in their nail biting Caribbean T20 encounter with Guyana on Friday night.

Courtney Walsh and Desmond Haynes have both described Sammy as a shining example of leadership and sportsmanship after he withdrew an appeal allowing Guyana to clinch a playoff spot.

"It is really good to see the Windward Islands and West Indies captain showing such mature leadership in a pressure situation," declared Walsh, one of the greatest fast bowlers of all time.

"I was very, very happy that our West Indies captain demonstrated the true spirit of the game and he should be commended for his action on the field of play".

The appeal was withdrawn at a crucial stage of the game after Veerasammy Permaul and Steven Jacobs ran a leg bye off the final ball, to see Guyana to a dramatic four-wicket victory.

The appeal was against Permaul for obstructing the fielders as he was hit by the return to the bowler's end.

"What Sammy did was outstanding, in my view, and he should be praised for the stance he took at that stage of the game," said Haynes, who formed the game's greatest opening partnership with compatriot Gordon Greenidge.

"Cricket, and sports in general, is not just about winning. It is also about how you play the game and your role as an ambassador."

Guyana won the gripping contest and went on to beat Jamaica in the Play-off on Saturday night but lost to Trinidad & Tobago in Sunday's final.

Source: www.trinidadexpress.com

The Irish Rugby Football Union (IRFU) has announced plans to stage talent identification screening days over the coming months in a bid to find women's rugby sevens players capable of taking the country to the Rio 2016 Olympic Games.

Rugby sevens will be making its Olympic debut at Rio 2016 after the International Olympic Committee (IOC) accepted it onto the sports programme in 2009 and Ireland are on the hunt to recruit players for their women's high performance rugby squad during February, March and April this year.

The hope for the IRFU is that it will be able to fast-track talented players for the 2013 Rugby Sevens World Cup which takes place at Luzhniki Stadium in Moscow, Russia from June 28 until 30.

The 2013 Rugby Sevens World Cup will be a vital stepping stone for Ireland's women as they look to secure a spot at Rio 2016 and IRFU director of rugby development Scott Walker has urged interested players to get involved.

"Becoming an Ireland player is one of the hardest journeys that sport has to offer, but with Moscow 2013 and Rio 2016 on the horizon the opportunities are immense," he said.

"We are looking for sports women who possess the right characteristics to take up the challenge, and aspire to international success."

The IRFU is looking for female candidates aged between 18 and 27 years old who qualify as Irish.

Good handling and evasion skills, an excellent level of fitness, strong decision making skills and a desire and determination for success are also vital.

Women's sevens captain Claire Molloy is also calling for Irish women to get involved in the talent identification screening days.

"Although it is early days for the women's sevens programme, I have pushed my fitness and skills to another level playing a sport I love whilst creating the opportunity for me to travel the world," said Molloy.

"I would strongly recommend anybody with the attributes to be a seven's players to register for the screening day and who knows where it could take you."

The first talent identification screening day is due to take place on February 16 at Limerick Institute of Technology, with the second on February 23 at Ashbourne RFC.

Successful candidates from these first two screening camps will be selected to go forward to the next stage of the process, which involves attending camps at Johnstown House Hotel in Meath on March 9 and a weekend residential camp at the same venue on April 13 and14.

Following the camps, successful players will then be selected for either the emerging Ireland sevens squad or the Irish women's national squad programmes.

By Tom Degun

Source: www.insidethegames.biz