USA women win first Olympic rugby sevens medal with comeback win over Australia
SAINT-DENIS, France — Alex Sedrick ran the length of the pitch, dove under the posts and then calmly took the conversion, securing a first Olympic rugby sevens medal for the United States with a last-minute 14-12 upset win over Australia.
Ilona Maher watched in awe as Sedrick fended off two tacklers near her own try line before sprinting down the other end to score in front of a crowd of more than 60,000 at the Stade de France and sparked jubilation among the Americans.
“I was like, ‘What the hell is this? Impossible?’ It was crazy, because I was like, ‘No, there’s no way that’s happening,’” Maher said of the audacious, game-winning try. “And then she has to shoot, and she’s not our shooter.”
The Americans lost to defending champion New Zealand in the semifinals – their first experience at this level – but overcame a 12-7 deficit against 2016 champions Australia with just seconds left.
The Australians scored first through Maddison Levi – who set a record for most tries in an Olympic tournament – but Alev Kelter got the Americans back in the game with a try to equalise before half-time.
Levi scored again with about two minutes left, but the Australians missed the conversion, leaving the door open if the Americans scored a try and converted.
For Sedrick, the decisive action was just one example of how she “takes inspiration from my older daughters. Ilona Maher. I just try to be like her.”
Maher is the undisputed face of women’s rugby in America, but Sedrick’s long-range try was the defining image of the bronze medal match.
The American players and staff rushed onto the field to celebrate the goal. Sammy Sullivan was in tears after watching the end of the game from the sidelines. Maher raised both arms in triumph.
Bruce Springsteen’s song “Born in the USA” blared from the stadium speakers.
The Americans had to wait until New Zealand beat Canada 19-12 in the final to take a place on the podium.
Maher became a social media star at the Tokyo Olympics three years ago, when her hilarious snaps of life in the pandemic-era athletes’ village went viral.
But she was devastated after a quarter-final defeat to Great Britain. She did a lot of sports psychology and figured out how to stay focused and continue to promote rugby, women’s sport and her team through her social media presence.
“I wanted to be good on social media – and I’m very active on it – but also be a really good rugby player,” she said. “And that was important to me.”
The medal is proof of this.
“It was important for me to show that I’m funny, but also authentic and that I’m also a really good rugby player,” she said. “So it was important for me to show that you can be anything you want to be. You can be a beast, a beauty, a brain.”
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