COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. – The United States Olympic Committee today announced the finalists for the Team USA Awards presented by Dow, Best of January, which recognize the outstanding achievements of Team USA athletes from last month. Fans are invited to vote for their favorite athletes and teams at TeamUSA.org/Awards through midnight Tuesday, Feb. 5.

A total of 10 sports – including bobsled, fencing, figure skating, freestyle skiing, luge, Para alpine skiing, Para Nordic skiing, rugby, track cycling and wrestling – are represented among the 13 finalists across men’s, women’s and team categories. The finalists’ collective accomplishments tell the inspiring story of U.S. Olympic and Paralympic athletes year-round.

JANUARY FINALISTS

Male Athlete of the Month

Nathan Chen (Salt Lake City, Utah), Figure Skating
Won his third consecutive U.S. title in Detroit, smashing his own scoring records for short program, free skate and overall score, as well as the U.S. record for the highest margin of victory at 58.21 points.

Alex Ferreira (Aspen, Colorado), Freestyle Skiing
Claimed his first X Games gold medal in superpipe in his hometown of Aspen, Colorado, scoring a 92.66 on his second run to best the competition by 2.33 points.

Race Imboden (Brooklyn, New York), Fencing
Secured two world cup medals in foil fencing with a silver at the world cup in Tokyo and a bronze at the world cup in Paris to retain his No. 3 world ranking.

Aaron Pike (Park Rapids, Minnesota), Para Nordic Skiing
Earned two silver medals in the men’s sitting class of the middle-distance cross-country and biathlon sprint at the world cup in Ostersund, Sweden, marking his first career cross-country world cup podium finish.

Thomas Walsh (Vail, Colorado), Para Alpine Skiing
Won his first career world championship medals, earning two bronzes in the men’s standing class of giant slalom and super combined in Kranjska Gora, Slovenia and Sella Nevea, Italy.

Female Athlete of the Month

Alysa Liu (Richmond, California), Figure Skating
At age 13, became the youngest skater ever to win a U.S. title, the first American woman to land two triple axels in a single performance and just the second woman in the world to land three triple axels in a single competition.

Oksana Masters (Louisville, Kentucky), Para Nordic Skiing
Secured four medals in the women’s sitting class at the world cup in Ostersund, Sweden, including golds in middle-distance cross-country and cross-country sprint, and silvers in biathlon sprint and biathlon individual.

Tamyra Mensah-Stock (Katy, Texas), Wrestling
Became the first American wrestler in any discipline to win three career titles at the Ivan Yarygin Grand Prix in Krasnoyarsk, Russia, widely considered the toughest open freestyle event in the world.

Elana Meyers Taylor (Douglasville, Georgia), Bobsled
Medaled in every women’s bobsled world cup race in January, including a gold-medal-finish with Lauren Gibbs in St. Moritz, Switzerland, to end Germany’s 24-race winning streak in world cup and Olympic bobsled races.

Emily Sweeney (Suffield, Connecticut), Luge
Secured the women’s bronze medal at the world championships in Winterberg, Germany, marking her first career senior championship podium finish 11 months after a crash at the Winter Olympic Games PyeongChang 2018 in which she broke a bone in her neck and back.

Team of the Month

U.S. men’s foil team, Fencing
Alexander Massialas (San Francisco, California), Miles Chamley-Watson (Philadelphia, Pennsylvania), Race Imboden (Brooklyn, New York) and Gerek Meinhardt (San Francisco, California) won the silver medal at the world cup in Tokyo, and added a bronze medal at the world cup in Paris, extending the team’s streak to nine straight world cup podium finishes to retain its No. 1 world ranking.

U.S. men’s team, Rugby Sevens
Won its third straight silver medal in the HSBC World Rugby Sevens Series, defeating host and reigning world cup champion New Zealand to tie Fiji for the No. 1 ranking in the world.

U.S. men’s team pursuit, Track Cycling
Eric Young (Geneva, Illinois), Colby Lange (Vail Valley, Colorado), Ashton Lambie (Lincoln, Nebraska) and Danny Summerhill (Centennial, Colorado) earned the silver medal in team pursuit at the world cup in Hong Kong, marking the best finish for a U.S. men’s team pursuit squad in over a decade.

SELECTION PROCESS

Each National Governing Body may nominate one female, one male and one team per sport discipline. An internal nominating committee selects finalists to advance to the voting round. Votes received from NGB representatives and select members of the media account for 50 percent of the final tally, with the other half determined by online fan voting via TeamUSA.org/Awards.

CHULA VISTA, CA. – Following their sixth-place finish at Rugby World Cup Sevens 2018, the Men’s Eagles Sevens will begin their Olympic qualifying year at the first stop of the HSBC World Rugby Sevens Series 2019 at Dubai Sevens, Nov. 30-Dec. 1.

Last Time on the Pitch

The Men’s Eagles Sevens last took the pitch in the 5/6 Place Final of Rugby World Cup Sevens 2018 in July — the first-ever U.S. hosted Rugby World Cup which took place at AT&T Park in San Francisco.

There, the squad battled through the straight knockout format to earn a victory over Wales before a crushing loss to England in extra time forced them out of contention for the World Champion title.

After a robust finish over Scotland, the United States men fell to Argentina; and though it wasn’t the finish they’d fought for, the USA still achieved their highest ever placing in a Rugby World Cup Sevens. Prior to 2018, the Men’s Sevens had never before concluded the competition higher than 13th, marking a climb of 7 places.

With the World Cup now behind them, Head Coach Mike Friday and the American men have set their sights on the most important battle ahead: qualifying for the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games. Given they left the last iteration of Dubai Sevens (2017) with a winless result — and with the bar set that much higher in the spirit of Tokyo 2020 — the United States men can be expected to play with the highest caliber of intensity.

Who to Watch

Head Coach Mike Friday has selected an extended traveling group of 14 athletes with a final starting 12 selected closer to the start of competition.

Of the 14, Maceo Brown and Marcus Tupuola will have the opportunity to make their national team debut after a strong performance with the developmental Men’s Falcons at the AF International Sevens and RugbyTown Sevens put them ahead for selection.

Tupuola and Brown will have another chance to prove themselves alongside 12 Eagles Sevens who consistently appear on the Series circuit.

Nominated for his second-consecutive World Rugby Sevens Player of the Year honors, USA fans will be thrilled to see Perry Baker back in the mix for Dubai and joined by fellow speedster Carlin Isles. Combined, both Isles and Baker scored 86 tries for the United States last season (not counting Rugby World Cup Sevens), accounting to 41% of all tries scored by the USA men.

If named to the final 12, sevens fans’ favorite playmaker Folau Niua will make his 60th World Rugby Sevens Series appearance, benchmarking a career filled with capital moments that earned Niua his honorable reputation.

A duo of debutants, another of speedsters, a playmaker and eight other studs will all be lead by Captain Madison Hughes in what will be the first appearance for the senior Men’s Sevens program in four months.

The Competition

Facing Spain, Wales and World Champion New Zealand will be no easy feat with each side battle-hardened from four months of preparation.

Spain will be first up for the Men’s Sevens with a battle set at 12 AM ET on Day One. The Spanish side missed Rugby World Cup Sevens 2018 and concluded their World Series run in 11th place last season, giving them much to prove in their first battle of Dubai.

Wales will be next at 3 AM ET and can be expected to enter the match with redemption top of mind after falling to the United States at the World Cup, finishing 11th in San Francisco and capping off a World Series 2018 season in 14th place.

Then will come the battle against back-to-back World Cup Champion New Zealand who finished their World Series season in third-place. The All Blacks Sevens and USA will both conclude the pool rounds against one another at 9:22 AM ET.

Hear it from Head Coach Mike Friday

On going into a new season…
“New season new challenge. It has been an interesting preseason for us given the changes to preparation and personnel that we have implemented to help us continuously evolve. We have also experienced a few unnecessary distractions which as a group we have had to contend with.”

On the main goal …
“Olympic qualification is the target for us in what will be an even more competitive season and I have no doubt the standard will improve once again. To try and continue to move forward we need to strive to achieve a consistency to our game in all matches and seek to eradicate any drops in performance during the same tournaments that hurt us last season. We are confident that if we can remain healthy and resilient to the challenge, we have what it takes to compete for every cup.”

On the potential two new debutants Marcus Tupuola and Maceo Brown…
“Both Marcus and Maceo have done remarkably well and worked very hard all summer to get this opportunity. Firstly this is a testament to JD Stephenson’s talent identification work which put both in the Collegiate All-American pathway and in front of us at RugbyTown Sevens these last two years.”

To Sum it Up

This HSBC World Rugby Sevens Series 2019 will bring an energy like never before. With rugby sevens on the doorstep of its second-ever inclusion in the Olympic Games, all teams will compete with a shattering momentum to finish in the Top 4 and seal their qualification.

Top among them will be the Men’s Eagles Sevens who ride fast into Dubai Sevens 2018 to challenge Spain, Wales and New Zealand in Pool C.

Men’s Eagles Sevens Extended Roster

All players are part of the Men’s Sevens residency program.

Perry Baker
Danny Barrett
Maceo Brown*
Madison Hughes (Captain)
Martin Iosefo
Carlin Isles
Matai Leuta
Cody Melphy
Folau Niua
Ben Pinkelman
Brett Thompson
Steve Tomasin
Marcus Tupuola*
Kevon Williams

*Could make their first HSBC World Rugby Sevens Series appearance.

Men’s Eagles Sevens Staff

Head Coach | Mike Friday
Assistant Coach | Anthony “Rocky” Roques
Strength & Conditioning Coach | Matt Long
Athletic Trainer | Brian Green
Team Manager | Scott Novack

Emirates Airline Dubai Sevens Schedule

Pool C | Broadcast LIVE on ESPN Networks (exact network TBD)

vs Spain | Fri, Nov. 30 – 12 AM ET
vs Wales | Fri, Nov. 30 – 3 AM ET
vs New Zealand | Fri, Nov. 30 – 9:22 AM ET

Top 5 placings for USA

(following HSBC World Rugby Sevens Series 2018)

DUBLIN, IRE – World Rugby has revealed the shortlists for the Men’s and Women’s Sevens Players of the Year 2018 awards in association with HSBC, which will be presented at the World Rugby Awards at the Salle des Etoiles in Monte Carlo on 25 November. The United States Perry Baker earned his second consecutive nomination, having won the honor in 2017.

The shortlists feature players from four nations, including three previous recipients of the prestigious award, with five of them having featured in the dream teams for the HSBC World Rugby Sevens Series 2018 or Rugby World Cup Sevens 2018.

Both shortlists were selected by players, match officials and commentators on the men’s and women’s HSBC World Rugby Sevens Series and Rugby World Cup Sevens 2018.

WORLD RUGBY MEN’S SEVENS PLAYER OF THE YEAR NOMINEES

PERRY BAKER (USA)
The oldest of the nominees at 32 and the 2017 recipient of this prestigious award, Perry Baker was at his scintillating best in Las Vegas in March, scoring eight tries – six of them in the knockout stages – as USA tasted success on home soil for the first time. The Eagles flyer has always had electric pace and the ability to create something out of nothing, but now has the all-round game to go with his natural speed to make him even more of a lethal finisher. The crowd favourite scored 37 tries in seven events on the 2018 series, missing the finale in Europe due to injury before returning to help USA to sixth place at RWC Sevens in San Francisco.

BEN O’DONNELL (AUSTRALIA)
Australia’s Ben O’Donnell enjoyed a debut season to remember on the series in 2018, scoring 32 tries across nine rounds – including two in the HSBC Sydney Sevens final as the hosts secured a first Cup title in six years. Nominated for the Rookie of the Year award, O’Donnell was the DHL Impact Player on three occasions and runner-up for the series accolade. A powerful runner with the ability to come off both feet, the 23-year-old is a constant threat to opponents with his work-rate and hunger to get his hands on the ball making him a key figure for Australia.

JERRY TUWAI (FIJI)
Fijian playmaker Jerry Tuwai earns a nomination for the second year running after once again carving open defences at will with his vision and step, making the most of his diminutive frame to dart through gaps to create opportunities for himself or those around him. The 29-year-old led Fiji to five titles on the 2018 series, including four in a row from Vancouver to London, and scored 25 tries along the way to also earn a place in the HSBC Dream Team for the series. Fiji missed out on the overall series title by two points to South Africa, had to settle for silver in the Commonwealth Games and then finished fourth at RWC Sevens, but Tuwai always plays with a smile on his face.

WORLD RUGBY WOMEN’S SEVENS PLAYER OF THE YEAR NOMINEES

MICHAELA BLYDE (NEW ZEALAND)
The youngest nominee at only 22, Michaela Blyde is in contention to win the award for the second year running after another impressive season with the Black Ferns Sevens that saw her named in the HSBC Dream Teams for both the series and RWC Sevens. The DHL Impact Player of the Series for a second time in 2018, Blyde scored 37 tries across the five rounds – second only to team-mate Woodman – as New Zealand finished as runners-up after winning the Kitakyushu, Langford and Paris rounds. Blyde, blessed with electric pace and quick feet, scored another nine to help New Zealand claim back-to-back RWC Sevens titles in San Francisco, including a hat-trick in the final against France. The season also saw her win an historic gold medal at the Commonwealth Games.

SARAH GOSS (NEW ZEALAND)
The inspirational captain of the Black Ferns Sevens for the last four years, Sarah Goss led her side to an historic gold medal at the Commonwealth Games in April, tournament victories in Kitakyushu, Langford and Paris and a successful defence of the RWC Sevens crown in a run of 27 consecutive wins. The 25-year-old, who started every match in the 2018 series, has a tireless work ethic which, combined with her dogged defence and vision, enables her to unlock defences for herself and her team-mates. Goss was named in the HSBC Dream Team for RWC Sevens in San Francisco after also receiving the UL Mark of Excellence as the best player in the tournament.

PORTIA WOODMAN (NEW ZEALAND)
The only player to be named World Rugby Women’s Player of the Year in both sevens (2015) and 15s (2017), Portia Woodman was at her devastating best in the 2018 series to finish as both the top try scorer and point scorer with 43 and 215 respectively across the five events. The former netballer may have moved into the forwards in sevens, but with her blistering pace, unbelievable footwork and power she remains a threat from anywhere on the pitch, leaving others in her wake to score herself or create opportunities for her team-mates. The 27-year-old’s displays inevitably earned her a place in the HSBC Dream Team for both the series and RWC Sevens.

World Rugby Chairman Bill Beaumont said: “Rugby sevens is a fan-favorite and this year we have enjoyed another incredible season of men’s and women’s HSBC World Rugby Sevens Series and, of course, a record-breaking RWC Sevens 2018 in San Francisco.

“These exceptional sevens athletes have been at the heart of the success story, inspiring a new generation of fans and players with their skill and athleticism. All are superb ambassadors for our sport and will play a huge part in the sevens success story for many seasons to come.”

These awards are two of 13 categories of awards, including the World Rugby Men’s and Women’s Players of the Year, World Rugby Team of the Year, World Rugby Breakthrough Player of the Year and Award for Character.

For more details on the panel members for each of the World Rugby Awards, visit www.worldrugby.org/awards/voting-panel.

For more information on the World Rugby Awards, visit www.worldrugby.org/awards.

TOKYO – Mataiyasi Leuta’s first World Rugby HSBC Sevens World Series try capped a seven-try, 39-0, Tokyo Sevens Bowl Quarterfinal victory for the Men’s Eagles Sevens against Portugal Sunday.

Eagles Head Coach Mike Friday was able to empty his bench in the win, which featured the return of Folau Niua. Niua missed the third day of Cathay Pacific/HSBC Hong Kong Sevens a week ago and Saturday’s action at Prince Chichibu Memorial Stadium with a six-match disciplinary ban.

With the freshest legs on the pitch, Niua opened the scoring in the second minute of the match. The Eagles gained possession on the kickoff and made it to midfield before losing the ball into touch. The defensive line pushed Portugal towards its own try line, where it relieved the pressure with a clearance kick.

Niua fooled his opposite number at the 10 with a dummy and ran 60 meters for a try between the sticks. He kicked his own conversion for the 7-0 lead.

Maka Unufe gave his team possession by jumping for Niua’s restart and knocking it to Garrett Bender. Niua made another dummy before being tackled outside the try line, but Bender was there to win the ruck. Physically dominant, Bender spun away from the ruck with the ball and reached over to dot down the ball in-goal.

Bender was instrumental in extending the Eagles’ 12-0 lead in the fifth minute after the U.S. won the restart. The try-scorer passed the 10 before finding Danny Barrett along the touch line, where Barrett lowered his shoulder into Diogo Mateus. With the pitch wet from the falling rain, Barrett slid into the try zone to put the Eagles’ lead at 17-0.

Portugal failed to use its short time with the ball in the final minute of the half, with a handling error giving the U.S. possession. A patient attack from Friday’s starting seven drew multiple penalties and eventually a yellow card. Niua and Unufe set up a calculated play with the quick tap to create space on the wing for Madison Hughes, who did not have to run far to score.

The Eagles kept up the energy through the break but committed a few penalties in the opening minute of the second half, though Portugal lost the ball in its own lineout. Following another change of possession, the Eagles drew a penalty and Barrett took on two defenders at midfield, where he found two options for the offload in Carlin Isles and Unufe. Unufe accepted the pass and ran away from the defenders to extend the lead to 29-0.

Nate Augspurger, Perry Baker, Andrew Durutalo, Nick Edwards, and Leuta each entered the match in the second half to help maintain the intensity. Augspurger shook off the rust with a run down the touch line in the final minute. The substitute kept out of two tackles before spinning a pass behind his back to Durutalo, who dove over the try line for the Eagles’ sixth try.

With just seconds left on the clock, the Eagles restarted play with the kick from midfield. Leuta ran underneath the ball, stripped it from an attacker, broke one tackle, and fended another defender to score his first career try and bring the final score to 39-0.

Samoa defeated Hong Kong in the Bowl Quarterfinals to set up the Semifinal matchup. The Eagles previously faced Samoa in the Cup Quarterfinal in Hong Kong, a loss for the U.S.

Watch the Eagles in the Bowl Semifinal at 1:16 a.m. ET Sunday on Universal Sports, and follow live match updates on Twitter with @USARugby.

Men’s Eagles Sevens | v. Portugal
1. Carlin Isles
2. Nic Edwards
3. Danny Barrett
4. Garrett Bender
5. Zack Test
6. Andrew Durutalo
7. Folau Niua
8. Maka Unufe
9. Nate Augspurger
10. Madison Hughes (C)
11. Perry Baker
12. Mataiyasi Leuta

Portugal | v. USA
1. David Mateus
2. Benardo Cardoso
3. Joao Belo
4. Pedro Leal
5. Diogo Miranda
6. Carl Murray
7. Francisco Sousa
8. Diogo Mateus
9. Nuno Guedes
10. Duarte Moreira
11. Jose Vareta
12. Joao Vaz Antunes

Men’s Eagles Sevens | 39
Tries: Niua, Bender, Barrett, Hughes, Unufe, Durutalo, Leuta
Conversions: Niua, Hughes

Portugal | 0
Tries: N/A
Conversions: N/A

Men’s Eagles Sevens | Tokyo Sevens
v Kenya – L 27-5
v Canada – W 22-14
v South Africa – L 24-15
Bowl QF v Portugal – W 39-0
Bowl SF v Samoa – Sunday, April 5 – 1:16 a.m. ET

TOKYO – The Men’s Eagles Sevens bounced back from their earlier loss at Tokyo Sevens Saturday by beating Canada, 22-14, for the third time of the 2014-15 World Rugby HSBC Sevens World Series.

Carlin Isles scored three tries and made a sizable defensive contribution in the victory, which keeps the Eagles in the hunt for the Cup round. A result against South Africa at 5:58 a.m. ET Saturday in the final match of Pool C could give the Eagles enough points to qualify.

Play was stopped in the second minute of the match as the Eagles looked to gain midfield, following a choppy start with multiple penalties awarded. Danny Barrett went into contact with Lucas Hammond, who stayed on the pitch. Play resumed, as did the physicality from the Eagles, with Maka Unufe standing up his opposite number before Canada lost the ball forward.

The Eagles lost the ball not far from their own try line in the fifth minute and Canada jumped on the opportunity to open the scoring. Justin Douglas took a tackler out of the play and offloaded to Mike Fuailefau for the try.

Much like the end of the first half in the loss to Kenya at Prince Chichibu Memorial Ground, the Eagles sought a try to cut the deficit before the halftime whistle. Madison Hughes sent a grubber kick from inside the defensive half to Canada’s 22, but Unufe could not reach it before it rolled into touch.

Well into the seventh minute, Barrett and Nick Edwards forced a turnover in a counterruck stemming from the lineout. Barrett popped the ball out of the ruck for his teammates to set up Isles’ first try of the match. The Eagles nearly overtook Canada’s 7-5 lead at the end of the half with time expired on the clock, but a knock forced the referee’s whistle.

Test was tackled as he caught the second-half restart, and Isles was there to take the ball from the ruck. The Eagles’ try-scorer showed his rugby smarts by utilizing the gap on the wing and got in behind the defensive line of Canada. Not even the sweeper could get a hand to Isles as he cut inside to the uprights. Hughes’ conversion gave the Eagles a 12-7 lead.

The restart again found the hand of Test as it was slapped backwards to the awaiting Garrett Bender, who drove his opposite number towards the try line. Canada took a penalty in the breakdown and the Eagles moved the ball wide. Edwards got the Eagles close and Test finished the play by diving around his teammate in-goal.

The Eagles took the 17-7 lead into the 13th minute, when Test’s clearance kick in-goal was blocked by Canada. Barrett, onside due to the touch on the ball, got a grip to keep it in the U.S.’s possession. The ball was lost in the breakdown, however, and Conor Trainor offloaded from the ground in front of the try line for John Moonlight to score.

Canada converted its second try to pull within three points at 17-14, but Isles made sure the lead stuck with a try in the final minute of the match for a 22-14 final.

The U.S. will finish play in Pool C at Tokyo Sevens against Series-leading South Africa at 5:58 a.m. ET Saturday. The seventh leg of the 2014-15 World Rugby HSBC Sevens World Series can be viewed on Universal Sports, and live updates will be provided by @USARugby on Twitter.

Men’s Eagles Sevens | v. Canada
1. Carlin Isles
2. Nic Edwards
3. Danny Barrett
4. Garrett Bender
5. Zack Test
6. Andrew Durutalo
7. Folau Niua
8. Maka Unufe
9. Nate Augspurger
10. Madison Hughes (C)
11. Perry Baker
12. Mataiyasi Leuta

Canada | v. USA
1. Sean White
2. Admir Cejvanovic
3. Mike Fuailefau
4. John Moonlight
5. Conor Trainor
6. Pat Kay
7. Lucas Hammond
8. Justin Douglas
9. Liam Underwood
10. Ciaran Hearn
11. Harry Jones
12. Adam Zaruba

Men’s Eagles Sevens | 22
Tries: Isles (3), Test
Conversions: Hughes

Canada | 14
Tries: Fuailefau, Moonlight
Conversions: Jones (2)

Men’s Eagles Sevens | Tokyo Sevens
v Kenya – L 27-5
v Canada – W 22-14
v South Africa – Saturday, April 4 – 5:58 a.m. ET