Harare — ZIMBABWE joined the rest of the world in celebrating the inclusion of rugby as an Olympic sport with the first Sevens games expected to feature at the Rio de Janeiro Games in 2016.

Cheetahs' manager Bruce Hobson was naturally excited about the development saying it will bring more competition and exposure for the players.

"This is a very important stage in the development of the game given that we only had the World Series and the World Cup to take part in," said Hobson.

"And, for teams that are not in the core circuit like Zimbabwe, we only get to play three tournaments at most in a year and we are also hoping that there will be a lot of 24-team tournaments like Hong Kong.

"But there is not likely to be a dramatic change in the short term but the good thing is that this is a very good dimension in the growth of the game."

The former Zimbabwe Rugby Union president added that with the inclusion of rugby in the Olympic family, the shorter version of the game will get funding from the International Olympic Committee.

"Over the past years we have been scratching on the surface for talent but we hope the Olympic grants we are going to get will help us to search for talent from the grasroots."

Rugby Sevens received 81 votes against eight no votes in Copenhagen yesterday.

According to reports Bernard Lapasset, president of the International Rugby Board, said: "This is a historic moment for our sport and for the global rugby community, who were united in support of our campaign.

"We are excited and honoured to be joining the Olympic Games and I would like to thank the IOC members for believing in our Olympic vision and our values and recognising that Rugby Sevens is a perfect fit for the Olympic Games.

"The Olympic Games will be the pinnacle of the sport for all our athletes and the Rugby family.

"The best men's and women's players in the world are excited to be able to showcase their talent on the world's greatest sporting stage.

"We are now looking forward to working in partnership with the IOC to develop and implement a Rugby Sevens tournament in Rio that will reach out to new audiences and inspire a new generation of sports fans around the world," added Lapasset.

Other Quotes

"More than anything, Sevens embodies the Olympic ideals of camaraderie, fair play and respect on and off the field of play." -- Shane Williams, Wales

"You play sport at the highest level to challenge yourself to be the best that you can possibly be and to compete with the best from all over the world, and what better stage to do that on than at the Olympics?" -- Sue Day, England

"Going to the Commonwealth Games was amazing and to have the chance to go to the Olympics would be right up there with anything you could possibly dream of doing in sport." -- Tamati Ellison, New Zealand.