LOS ANGELES, CA: HSBC, title partner of the HSBC World Rugby Sevens Series, today announced the upcoming release of part three of the award-winning documentary ‘The Pioneers’. For the first time, in line with HSBC’s commitment to ensuring greater parity between the men’s and women’s game, the documentary will follow both the USA men’s and women’s sevens teams as they strive to become Olympic gold medal winners in Tokyo.
That announcement was accompanied with a trailer, giving fans a first look at the new expanded documentary. That trailer can be viewed here: https://youtu.be/EPh1XAMHqus.
In 2018, HSBC released ‘The Pioneers’ (parts one and two) following the USA men’s team’s attempt to take home the Rugby World Cup Sevens on home soil. Airing exclusively on NBC in the US, the documentary contributed to the three-day tournament becoming the most-watched live rugby broadcast ever in the USA, reaching nine million viewers.
Part three will pick up the story at a moment of incredible opportunity for both the men’s and women’s teams. With both having experienced great success over the past few seasons, gold in Tokyo could represent the moment the sport finally makes it to the mainstream in the USA and beyond.
Having won on home soil at the HSBC Glendale Sevens in October, the USA women’s team have established themselves as a leading contender in Tokyo. The move to incorporate both the men’s and women’s sevens teams is reflective of HSBC’s global commitment to gender equality. HSBC has been an active part of working with World Rugby to ensure rugby sevens continues to lead the way in this area, including the expansion of the women’s series from six tournaments to eight, six of which are now combined with the men’s series.
New for part three of ‘The Pioneers’, HSBC has been joined in the project by USA Rugby’s Principal Partner EY (EYGS LLP). EY US (Ernst & Young LLP) is supporting USA Rugby in the development of a 10-year organizational strategic plan, with the primary focus to revamp USA Rugby’s digital strategy to increase audience participation, grow the rugby fan base through digitally-enabled methods and increase business opportunities for USA Rugby.
Sven Gloor, Head of Rugby Partnerships at HSBC, said: “As we continue our commitment to driving the sustainable growth of rugby sevens, we are delighted to once again bring the story of ‘The Pioneers’ to fans around the world featuring two incredibly talented teams with players from a diverse range of backgrounds.
“It is vital that both young boys and young girls have sevens heroes to inspire them and we are therefore delighted that we will be following the USA Women’s Sevens journey in part three of ‘The Pioneers’. On the back of securing a greater number of women’s sevens legs, this is an important moment for the women’s game and HSBC is proud to continue to drive progress in this area.”
Emilie Bydwell, Women’s High Performance Director from USA Rugby said: “It’s hugely exciting for the Women’s program to be featured in the upcoming edition of ‘The Pioneers’. Both the Women’s and the Men’s sevens program have an opportunity this summer to change rugby in America with medal performances. The legacy for the Women’s team transcends medals as we look to inspire our communities to be brave, ignite a love for rugby and the culture it represents and unite the country - even if just for a 14 minute game. As a program, our culture is brave, and we hope that through being featured in ‘The Pioneers’, people can gain insight into our purpose, our players and our values.”
Kelly Grier, EY Americas Area Managing Partner, says: “We know that diverse teams drive unparalleled results and when they’re able to leverage their unique strengths with a common purpose, they are best positioned for success. That's why we’re proud to be the Principal Partner of USA Rugby and contribute in growing the game of rugby, while promoting the power of diversity – on and off the field.”
Director of the film, Zoomfiji’s Bruce Southwick, said at the launch: “Being a Fijian director, rugby sevens has always been a huge part of my life. Having the opportunity to go behind the scenes with this incredible USA team – both men’s and women’s - is a privilege as we watch them chase history and realise their American dream. The togetherness the teams’ showcase is truly inspiring and we’re excited to be on this journey with them once again.”
‘The Pioneers’ part three is set to launch later this year. The trailer can be viewed here: https://youtu.be/EPh1XAMHqus
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