The road to the 2009 World Cup Sevens in Dubai will begin right here at home - most probably at King's Park - after Hong Kong were awarded the rights to host the Asian zone qualifiers for both the men's and women's events in October.
The Asian Rugby Football Union's executive committee, which met yesterday at Olympic House, unanimously decided that the Hong Kong Rugby Football Union should host the two-day tournament on October 4-5. A total of 24 teams - 12 men's and 12 women's - will take part.
The other major decision reached yesterday was that the Asian Five Nations - which will kick-off for the first time in April - will be used in 2010 to decide Asia's representative at the 2011 World Cup (15-a-side) to be held in New Zealand.
Both decisions will give Hong Kong rugby a definite target to aim for, one near-term and one long-term. While Hong Kong have never qualified for the 15s World Cup, they have taken part in every World Cup Sevens and will want to keep that record alive this October.
'It will be the first time that an Asian union hosts both a men's and women's tournament at the same time,' said Ross Mitchell, ARFU secretary-general. 'At the moment neither the format nor the venue has been decided. That will be left to the Hong Kong union to decide.'
According to Mitchell, the Arabian Gulf and Kazakhstan had also expressed interest in hosting the qualifiers, which will see two men's teams and two women's teams book their berth at the fifth World Cup Sevens and the inaugural Women's World Cup.