BOULDER, Colo. – The USA Sevens Team has officially received its invitation to be a member of the Core Teams on the 2008/2009 IRB Sevens World Series circuit.

Becoming a Core Team in the IRB Sevens World Series means that the USA can participate in all eight Sevens circuit stops throughout the 2008-2009 season. Considering this season marks the 10th anniversary of the IRB Sevens World Series and 2009 will see the pinnacle competition for the game, when Dubai hosts the fifth Rugby World Cup Sevens event, these upcoming months for the will prove extremely important for all participating teams.

“We are so thrilled that the International Rugby Board has awarded us fulltime status,” USA Sevens Team Coach Al Caravelli said. “The team was determined to put in the hard work and this is a huge step forward for the USA Sevens program and more importantly for USA Rugby.”

Since 2006, USA Rugby has set a course to refurbish the national teams programs by exposing all of its elite athletes to a High Performance environment, starting with the sevens program. From trying new nutritional plans to identifying new training facilities like the Olympic Training Center in Chula Vista, Calif., USA Rugby has been focused in stepping up several of the training techniques used for its athletes.

“Now that we are a Core Team,” Caravelli added, “we really have to pick it up several more notches. I know the boys are up to it and we are all eager to start this exciting new season. So much support and work goes in behind the scenes and it’s nice to finally have such an obvious payoff for all of the dedication shown by the USA Rugby staff, Congress and Board of Directors, not to mention the friends, families and fans who all continue to support the team.”

The U.S. will kick off its 2008-2009 season with the Rugby World Cup Qualifier in the Bahamas. The U.S. has to finish among the top two in this event in order to qualify for the 2009 Sevens RWC in Dubai.  After the Qualifier, the U.S. gets nearly a month break before coming back together in late November for the Dubai Sevens stop on November 28-29. The Team then travels to South Africa on December 5-6, before getting the rest of December and the full month of January off for the holidays.

On February 6-7, the U.S. Sevens Team heads to Wellington for the New Zealand Sevens event, before coming to the USA Sevens in San Diego on February 14-15. The USA Sevens will be the last event before the Rugby World Cup Sevens in Dubai on March 5-6.  Then just a couple weeks later, the U.S. will be back on the circuit for the Hong Kong Sevens event on March 27-29, the Adelaide (Australia) Sevens on April 4-5, followed by the London Sevens on May 23-24 and finally the Edinburgh ( Scotland) Sevens on May 30-31.

Rugby sevens is a variant of rugby union in which only seven players per side compete, instead of the full 15. This version of rugby union has gained worldwide recognition with notable competitions including the IRB Sevens World Series and the Rugby World Cup Sevens. Rugby sevens has also just recently been included in the Pan American Games for 2011 and is the form of rugby that is up for inclusion in the Olympic Games lineup.