Team GB might not be sending a rugby sevens team to the Paris Olympics, but the man who helped clinch the side’s first and only medal is going as… head coach of Japan! Simon Amor, 45, is something of a legend on the rugby sevens circuit, though is developing an unwanted reputation as a nearly-man.
As a player, he won a silver medal with England at the 2006 Commonwealth Games, and in that same year was part of the England side that finished second in the World Rugby Sevens Series. Fast-forward a decade and Amor was appointed head coach of the team but struggled to shake the habit of near misses he developed as a player.
A few months later, England won silver at the Rio Olympics, before finishing second again at the 2017 World Rugby Sevens Series. A year after that his side competed at the 2018 Rugby World Cup Sevens and (yep, you guessed it), finished second again.
In 2020 Amor was appointed attack coach of England’s full XVs team under head coach Eddie Jones, but left the role less than 18 months later following the team’s poor showing in the 2021 Six Nations. He then had a brief spell in charge of Hong Kong’s sevens side before being appointed technical director of Japan’s sevens team.
This led to a promotion to head coach less than a year later, and under Amor’s guidance, Japan finished top of their Olympic qualifying pool. Subsequent wins over UAE and Amor’s old side Hong Kong in the knockout stages sealed qualification to the Paris Games, something Great Britain failed to achieve.
Despite finishing top of their qualifying pool, Team GB, managed by Tony Roques, lost to Ireland in the final of the knockout round. As such, they were placed in a play-off competition with other runners-up from around the world but were beaten by South Africa.
It marked the first time a Team GB rugby side had ever failed to qualify for the Olympics, though the event has only been a fixture in the Olympic calendar since 2016. After winning silver in Rio, England finished fourth at Toyko 2020, narrowly missing out on a medal.
