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Rugby needs visibility at top level to progress in India: Brett Gosper

Rugby World Cup 2019 will be held in Japan, the first time the tournament will be held in Asia.

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Vahbiz Bharucha (L), captain Indian women’s rugby team, looks at Rugby World Cup 2019 trophy at Bombay Gymkhana in Mumbai on Wednesday
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The second leg of the 2019 Rugby World Cup Trophy Tour was held at the Bombay Gymkhana here on Wednesday. 

Rugby World Cup 2019 will be held in Japan, the first time the tournament will be held in Asia.

Speaking at the event where the Web Ellis Cup was unveiled, former Indian Rugby player and film personality Rahul Bose said that from the three cities where the trophy will be unveiled (Delhi, Mumbai and Bhubaneswar), Mumbai holds a special place for him. 

He said, “Bombay (Mumbai) is special, as there are many grounds here where many sports became famous like Dadar Union and Shivaji Park for cricket, Azad Maidan and Cooperage for football, MSLTA courts for tennis. 

“There is one ground in this country where rugby has its grassroots, where it actually flowered was the Bombay Gymkhana ground. Rugby has been played at the Bombay Gymkhana ground for 100 years,” he added. 

Commenting on India’s inclusion in the World Cup Trophy Tour World Rugby CEO Brett Gosper said, “18 countries are selected for the tour. They are selected for strategic reasons. In India we have seen huge potential in the growth of Rugby in this part of the world. This is the first World Cup to ever come to Asia. First one to be outside the traditional rugby market.

“We have already done some research and found out that the third biggest fan base that we have is India. Only China and USA have more fans than India (25.7 million) already that is the indication of potential,” added Gosper.

Commenting on the growth and progress of rugby in the country Nasser Hussain (GM Rugby India) said that, “The sport and the development has been pan India, 24 states play rugby, men’s senior, women’s senior, and age grade for boys and girls, and its all over. 

“The only region where we have difficulty going to is north east say Mizoram and Tripura, but all major Union Territories and states are a part of our programme. Senior and junior nationals had 24 states compete in both men’s and women’s categories.”

Asked why rugby has not made much of a progress in India, Gosper said, “What’s lacking in India at the top level is the visibility. Success of teams, whether in the age of groups or the senior teams, is very important. We also need a local competition which will capture the attention of spectators, that’s something we’ve been trying to work on.”

The trophy will continue onto the final leg of its India tour in Bhubaneswar on Thursday.

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