Antoine Dupont was crowned the world's best sevens Rugby player this Sunday at the World Rugby Awards. Enough to cause a little frustration in some.
Nothing can resist Antoine Dupont and this was confirmed again on Sunday evening, during the World Rugby Awards. During this evening organized to celebrate the best rugby players of the year, the French international distinguished himself by winning the 2024 world player of the year trophy in rugby sevens. A novice in the discipline just a year ago, the prodigy grilled everyone, perhaps causing a little frustration among the VII regulars.
Invited to speak on the subject this Monday, Hugo Bonneval expressed his understanding of what some of Antoine Dupont's competitors may have felt during this coronation. “It’s deserved because he won all the competitions he undertook this year. Whether at XV or VII, he won everything. At VII, I understand a little that it is difficult to accept because (…) his first tournament at VII is February 23 (2024). This means that in ten months, Antoine Dupont won two tournaments, in Las Vegas and the end-of-year World Series in Madrid, he was elected best player in the world at VII, rookie of the year also in the tournament and he is an Olympic champion. »
A proven extraterrestrial
A relentless success which could have provoked some jealousy, or at least a little of this famous frustration, as the channel's consultant continued to explain
The Team. “That’s the problem. […] Ordinary people have to train for several years to try to be on time for the Olympic Games, and in ten months he wins everything. But that’s what makes an exceptional player. When his trainer says it's an alien, I think it is. Really. » Returning to Antoine Dupont's contribution to France 7 during this particular year, Hugo Bonneval continued in the same vein.
“The impact he had on and off the field with this team, the confidence he managed to bring to them… First of all, I didn't think he would be able to have an impact on the whole team. French team, overall, so quickly. Even on the performances of his teammates. By his aura, what he gives off and what he conveys on the pitch, the fear that he also brings to his opponents. He managed to blend into a collective in an exceptional way. » A real plebiscite for Antoine Dupont who closed the VII parenthesis after the Paris Olympics and who came back to win with the XV of France during the autumn tour.
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