Habana Backs Hooper’s Sevens Pursuit Ahead of Paris 2024
Renowned Springboks legend Bryan Habana has thrown his weight behind Michael Hooper’s pursuit of Olympic success in rugby sevens ahead of the Paris 2024 Games. The flanker, who has earned 125 caps for Australia in the 15-a-side format, made his highly anticipated debut in the HSBC SVNS series in Hong Kong last weekend, helping his team secure a 12-0 victory over Fiji.
Despite Hooper’s relative inexperience in the shorter format, which requires a different style of fitness, coach John Manenti opted not to field the 32-year-old in the semi-final defeat to eventual champions New Zealand. Nonetheless, Hooper will have two more opportunities to impress before the Paris 2024 selection, with the regular SVNS season culminating in Singapore next month before the finals weekend in Madrid in late May.
Hooper’s decision to pursue a sevens career comes after he was controversially omitted from the Wallabies’ World Cup squad by coach Eddie Jones last autumn, a move that contributed to Australia’s disastrous pool stage exit. Habana, who himself attempted to make the transition to sevens ahead of the 2016 Rio Olympics, believes Hooper’s physical and mental attributes make him well-suited to excel in the shorter format.
“His engine alone, his tenacity and mental fortitude stand him in good stead,” said Habana, an HSBC global brand ambassador. “I felt he got the short end of the stick before the Rugby World Cup. For a guy who has given the game so much and is as astute as he is, with his leadership abilities and what he’s achieved in the game, to come over is great. He is giving himself a real crack to make a success of this sevens experience and maybe go to an Olympics.”
Hooper’s move follows in the footsteps of France’s star scrum-half Antoine Dupont, who missed the recent Six Nations to lead the Olympic hosts to their first SVNS series title in 19 years. While Habana acknowledges the difficult decisions facing coaches in balancing the needs of established sevens players and high-profile newcomers, he believes the potential rewards could be immense.
“The difficulty a coach has is that when you have had a core set-up who have been involved in sevens for a while, yes you can bring in a superstar, but what about that person who has grafted extremely hard?” Habana said. “It’s gut wrenching for those that miss out. But bold decisions need to be made – if we do see Antoine Dupont or Michael Hooper get into a side and they go on and win a gold medal, that’s amazing, right?”
Habana’s own attempt to make the 2016 Olympics was hampered by injury and contractual obligations, but he looks back on his sevens experience with fondness, highlighting the “brotherhood” he experienced and the pride in being part of South Africa’s bronze medal-winning campaign.
The new HSBC documentary “Going for Green and Gold with Michael Hooper” provides an in-depth look at the former Wallabies captain’s transition to rugby sevens and his pursuit of Olympic glory.
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