Fiji beats NZ, moves into Olympic medal rounds vs Japan
RIO DE JANEIRO (AP) — Fiji moved into the rugby sevens medal round at the Olympics after a 12-7 win over New Zealand, and will face an unexpected rival in the semifinals after Japan continued its remarkable run.
The back-to-back world series champion Fijians are vying for their country's first ever Olympic medal and have already overcome one of the toughest hurdles in world rugby by beating New Zealand in a knockout match.
But Japan is growing in confidence, too, after a stunning upset win over New Zealand and narrowly missing a draw against Britain on the opening day of the tournament and following it up on Wednesday with a win over Kenya before a 12-7 quarterfinal win over France.