A consecration to conclude the year. Crowned Olympic champion in Paris this summer in Rugby sevens, Antoine Dupont was elected player of the year in this category on Sunday November 24. He becomes the first player to receive this distinction in rugby union (in 2021) and sevens.
The Toulouse native, who discovered the discipline this year with a view to the Games, was decisive during the Olympic tournament, notably scoring four tries, including two in the final against Fiji. With his presence, the French rugby sevens team ended a 19-year drought without a title on the world circuit. His coach Jérôme Daret was elected coach of the year.
His presence among the finalists had been criticized, in particular by the Argentine coach Santiago Gomez Cora. “Everything for show and that's what France did with Dupont. He played two stages of the world circuit, including one as a substitute. He totaled 12 minutes in Vancouver but was elected to the standard team. A From there, we suspected things a little. It seems to me that it's too much and it's a lack of respect.”he complained, while no Argentinian was appointed this year after the coronation of Rodrigo Isgro in 2023.
At 28, the Blues scrum-half is at the peak of his career. Now back in rugby union, he will try to win a second Six Nations Tournament next year, before aiming for a first World Cup in 2027.
Among the women, it was the Australian Maddison Levi who received the distinction, she who won bronze at the Paris Olympics by scoring 14 tries during the competition. Three French people were distinguished in the 7 of the year: Antoine Dupont accompanied by Aaron Grandidier for the men, and Séraphine Okemba for the women.
In rugby union, it was South African Pieter-Steph Du Toit who was rewarded for the second time after 2019. In 2024, he was a key part of the South African team that won their first Rugby Championship title in five years, then followed that up with a perfect Autumn Nations Series tour, beating Scotland, England and England. Wales. Among the women, the Englishwoman Ellie Kildunne, who achieved the Grand Slam during the Six Nations, was chosen.
Only one Frenchwoman appears in one of the two XV of the year: Pauline Bourdon-Sansus. Note that the two tests of the year are to the credit of the Tricolores: Nolann Le Garrec against Wales and Marine Ménager against Canada.
