the election of Antoine Dupont as the best player in the world at 7 causes an outcry

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While the World Rugby Awards delivered their prize list at the end of the autumn tour, this gave rise to strong reactions on social networks. The election ofAntoine Dupont inasmuch as best player in the men's rugby sevens circuit in particular caused an uproar on the side of some fans.

Antoine Dupont best player at 7: a criticized choice

Three tournaments for a record of a bronze medal (in Vancouver) and two victories in Los Angeles and Madrid, the latter having been synonymous with the honorary title of world champions for the Blues of France 7. At the time we had , before the title at the Olympic Games, spoke of successful integration for Antoine Dupont.

In terms of results, we did worse! And even if the gold medal at the Olympics was not a priori taken into account by World Rugby in its choice, seeing Antoine Dupont elected best player in the world at 7 is not totally illogical. Far from being the one who played the most, he is perhaps the player who had the most impact on the progress of his team's season.

This did not prevent strong reactions and criticism from certain fans, often South African or Argentinian, on social networks.

“Imagine working hard all year at 7 to see the mascot play 10 minutes and receive all the praise, a scam. »

“A bit of an insult to regular 7s players. »

“Fake, give it to a player who worked hard throughout the 7s circuit. An insult to many. Same level of corruption as Fifa and UEFA…”

“This can only be a joke. What an insult to the 7 players.”

“What a joke.” »

“How many minutes did he play? »

“Total fraud. »

A nod to Dupont's skeptics

Although they are sometimes excessive, we can understand the basis of some of these reactions. Let us not forget, however, that even if the captain of the XV of France did not play the entire season, he never cheated with France 7. He not only arrived without pretension before winning his place, but he also was decisive. Thus silencing some skeptics.

“I was right to follow my intuition, even when at first no one really believed it. Everyone said afterwards that it was logical, but I remember the first articles, no one said that. I don’t have a short memory either and I am proud of the choices I made,” he recalled after leaving the ceremony.

Rookie of the year, best player of the year, world champion and Olympic champion. Antoine Dupont can look back with the feeling of duty accomplished, the bet will definitely have been successful.

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