When Is A Bronze Medal Sweet?
USA Women's Rugby Sevens Team Beats Australia. Wins 3rd Place in Paris
Oh yeah, man. After all that hullabaloo I made about the Olympics not being cool, the first bit of it I saw was the end of the Women’s Rugby Sevens Tournament. A tournament that had New Zealand winning the whole shebang, but it was Team USA making the headlines in the 3rd place game.
You see, New Zealand had already beaten USA and there’s no shame and losing to the eventual winners of the tournament. Still, USA had a really strong challenge over tournament favorites Australia. Australia, already miffed they were in the 3rd place game to begin with, just KNEW they had it in the bag. Well,
(Yeah apologies on the whole “ya gotta watch on YouTube” thing)
TLDR: In teen Disney sports movie fashion, Australia took their foot off the pedal, and Team USA scores on the last play of the game. And they send the “stronger” team home with NOTHING. And while I’m sure the real tournament was “the friends they made along the way,” people from Down Under were NOT happy. From ABC News (Australia):
"They're devastated. They've put a lot into it," Walsh said after the match.
"Everyone is [devastated]. The staff are. But we got to hold our heads high. We came into this tournament to walk away without regret in terms of our preparation.
"Every single one of them have done that. So, they can be proud.
"They're going to be disappointed obviously but I'm proud of them." - ABC News
Now, I’m fairly new to the sport of rugby, and I’m still trying to learn the different ways of playing and watching the thing, this is the kind of storyline people LOVE. Not only was it the underdog USA team beating a giant in Australia, but it also has that “beat them at their own game” vibe that people won’t forget. Remember the Miracle on Ice? Or how about when the USA beat Pakistan at the Cricket World Cup? Or that time when Japan beat the USA in (American) Football?
The win was Team USA’s FIRST-ever medal in rugby, male OR female. And the moment was just viral enough that it can probably be held up as an inspiration for the next generation of American rugby players.
…Or maybe it would be a vengeance arc for the next generation of Aussie players, idk.