Having won the first Olympic Sevens title with a Cambridge Blue as their head coach, Fiji have turned to a Dark Blue to guide them to their defence in Tokyo in 2020.
Where Ben Ryan led so successfully earlier this year in Rio, Oxford University scrum half Gareth Baber has been handed a four year contract through to the next Olympic Games. The 44-year-old Baber played for the Dark Blues in the 1993 Varsity Match and has been head coach of the Hong Kong men’s rugby sevens side since November, 2013.
As a player he tuned out professionally for Pontypridd, Aberavon, Bristol and Newport Gwent Dragons. After going into coaching he became assistant coach to the Wales Sevens team that won the plate at the Commonwealth Games in Melbourne in 2006. He went on to become assistant coach to Wales Under 20 and then joint head coach at Cardiff Blues.
“As a coach, this is an incredible opportunity to work with the present world and Olympic champions. Coaches, like players, need to constantly challenge themselves and I want to continuously strengthen my knowledge of the game and the competition level that Fiji operates at will provide that opportunity,” said Baber.
“This appointment would not have been possible without the support of the Hong Kong Rugby Union and the opportunities they have given me. I have tremendous affection for Hong Kong and Hong Kong rugby and if there is one positive to my leaving it is the opportunity to work with Fiji Rugby, who have such a special relationship with the city, and the chance to return every year during the Hong Kong Sevens.”
