Four QUT rugby players are in France this week representing Australia at the World University Championship (WUC) Rugby Sevens.
QUT students Harrison Martin (Bachelor of Nursing) and Finn Johnstone (Bachelor of Secondary Education) are competing in the national men’s rugby sevens side, and Bachelor of Clinical Exercise Physiology student Sophie Duff is part of the Australian women’s rugby sevens team.
QUT graduate Meg Gemmell is also part of the national UniRoos, after recently completing her Bachelor of Business / Bachelor of Engineering (Honours). Players are eligible to continue to represent their university and country at uni games in the year following their graduation.
Meg said she’d always dreamed of representing her country in rugby.
“I’m really looking forward to travelling with a good group of people and representing my country overseas ... Playing in the south of France will also be a highlight of the trip,” she said.
“I completed my degree end of last year and was balancing uni, rugby and work. I was lucky enough to have the support of the QUT Elite Athlete Program and my workplace to be able to juggle everything.
“Currently, I am working part-time at Aurecon while training with the Qld Reds/QAS 7s program. Aurecon has been amazing at supporting me and helping me balance both with my professional career and my sporting career.
“Once I’m back in Australia I will keep training for selection into the Aussie A team and for Queensland in the Next Gen 7s comp.”
Sophie said she was also honoured to be playing for Australia in France.
“To represent your country is an incredible opportunity,” she said.
“I have never been to France so I’m really excited about it, and to play against countries I have never played before.”
Sophie has plenty of international experience already though, having been on a leave of absence from her QUT studies in Semester 1.
“I have been living in Japan for the past five months playing rugby, and I will be heading straight to France from Japan,” she said.
“So when I come back I’m looking forward to catching up with friends, and doing further study.
“In terms of rugby — I will be playing for Australia A in a competition where we will verse Australia, Fiji, and Japan to help them with their Olympic preparations.”
Sophie said she had an incredible support system around her at uni and away from uni, that helped her balance her studies and rugby.
“QUT and the Elite Athlete Program have been incredible at helping me with my degree – the support they offer when I have competitions that clash with assignments or exams is amazing,” she said.
For Harrison, competing in the WUC Rugby Sevens means growing as a player and getting to see a beautiful part of the world.
“This competition means a great deal to me as it is an amazing opportunity for me to push myself against some of the best student-athletes around the world – I get the chance to learn and grow my skillset while also representing my country,” he said.
He said it was a challenge to balance his part-time nursing studies and rugby, but he found good planning helped keep stress levels down.
He said he also found the Elite Athlete Program initiatives helpful, such as sports-oriented workshops that made sure athletes had the tools they needed to compete at their best at events like the world uni championships.
“The goal is to train hard and have a successful tournament with the UniRoos,” he said.
“Being able to play at this calibre of tournament can open the door to a lot of new opportunities and I'm excited about that.”
Finn is also aiming for a successful Uniroos campaign, against countries including France, Spain, Japan, Argentina and India.
“It means a lot to have the opportunity to represent my country in some degree – it’s one of those things you always want to do,” he said.
“Hopefully I am able to get some more opportunities in the future.”
The 2024 FISU World University Championship Rugby Sevens are being held in Aix-en-Provence, in the south of France near Marseille, from June 10 to 12. The draw and results can be followed online.
Image at top of page: From top left clockwise - QUT rugby players Finn Johnstone, Meg Gemmell, Harrison Martin and Sophie Duff.
QUT Media contacts:
- Mechelle McMahon, media@qut.edu.au
- After hours, 0407 585 901 or media@qut.edu.au
