Fiji and New Zealand hit the ground running on day one of the Hong Kong Sevens tournament, recording strong wins across the board and putting both nations in control heading into the weekend’s next stage.

The Cathay/HSBC Hong Kong Sevens, from 17-19 April, marks the opening round of the new HSBC SVNS World Championship series.

This weekend’s tournament also marks the series’ 50th anniversary and kicks off a three-leg race with Valladolid and Bordeaux in France to decide the 2026 champions.

Fiji’s men were the standout early, going two from two to sit near the top of their pool with a key clash against an unbeaten France team at 4.13pm (NZT).

The Fijians opened in style running in a 42-5 win over Germany. Terio Veilawa and Tira Walagi both grabbed doubles while Filipe Sauturaga and Tomasi Vuluma also crossed in a dominant display.

They followed it up with a tougher 24-10 win over Great Britain showing composure when it mattered to secure their place in day two.

Head coach Osea Kolinisau, who captained Fiji to win gold at the Rio Olympics in 2016, said he expected a challenge especially after facing Great Britain several times already this season.

“We knew it wasn’t going to be an easy game,” Kolinisau told reporters. “But I thank the boys for composing themselves and finishing off that game.”

Kolinisau added there is still work to do, pointing to their “one-on-one tackles” as an area to improve before the next game this afternoon.

Players from the Fiji men’s team. Photo/Facebook

In the women’s draw, Fijiana bounced back from their 12-5 loss to Japan to edge Brazil 15-12. They next face a New Zealand side that remains unbeaten in the series since January 2025.

The Black Ferns Sevens once again looked the team to beat, cruising past Brazil and Japan with confidence to move comfortably into day two.

Jorja Miller stood out, setting up and finishing a superb long-range try against Japan in another strong all-round performance.

Head coach Cory Sweeney told reporters that his side’s ability to adapt is key to their success.

“We’ve been going well but will continue to take things one game at a time,” he said.

There was also a solid start for the New Zealand men, who bounced back from a sixth-place finish in New York last month with wins over the USA and Kenya.

Those results set up a trans-Tasman clash with Australia at 5.47pm (NZT) as the Kiwis look to build momentum.

With Fiji’s flair and New Zealand’s consistency on show, the Pacific teams have made their mark early in Hong Kong. And with bigger tests to come, day two is shaping up to be even better.

For more information on the HSBC SVNS Series, click here.