Former England Sevens star Ben Gollings has been sacked from the Fiji squad. (Jason O'Brien/Getty Images)
- Fiji sevens head coach Ben Gollings has been sacked with just four months left until the Paris Olympics.
- Former Fiji Sevens captain Osia Kolinisau has replaced the British player.
- Fiji won the men's Olympic title in 2016, beating Great Britain 43-7 in the final, and won it again in Tokyo 2021, defeating New Zealand 27-12 in the gold medal match.
- For more sports news, news 24 sports cover.
Ben Gollings has been sacked as head coach of the Fiji men's sevens team, the Fiji Rugby Union announced on Friday, four months before the team aims to win its third straight Olympic title in Paris.
Former England Sevens international Gollings, 43, will be replaced by former Fiji Sevens captain Osea Kolinisau, board chairman Peter Mazzei told reporters in Suva.
Kolinisau, 38, won an Olympic gold medal with Fiji at the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Games and will be appointed as head coach.
Mr Maisey said Fiji Rugby's leadership parted ways with Gollings “because he was unable to live up to the desired standards and expectations set out within the organization and within his contract”.
Looking ahead to the Paris Games, which open on July 26, Maisie said, “If we are to pursue Olympic glory in France, we must achieve our best results.''
Mr Gollings, who was appointed as Fiji's coach in December 2021, was sacked after the team completed five rounds of the season, with the team still awaiting a tournament win on the World Sevens Series circuit.
“We thoroughly evaluated our performance and it became clear that we needed to make strategic adjustments,” Maisie said.
Gollings' dedication and hard work is “admirable,” but “the ultimate goal of winning a medal” at the Olympics has to take precedence, Maisey said. “New perspectives and expertise” were needed, he added.
Osia Kolinisau, who played against South Africa's Werner Koch at the 2017 Wellington Sevens, will be Fiji's next sevens head coach. (Photo by Phil Walter/Getty Images)
A Fiji Sevens star, Kolinisau captained the team at the 2016 Olympics and won back-to-back World Sevens Series titles in 2015 and 2016.
Fiji have long excelled in shortened games, with smooth handling, speed, crunchy tackling and a desire to run the ball from anywhere, often ending in outrageous tries.
They won the men's Olympic title in 2016, beating Great Britain 43-7 in the final, and won it again in Tokyo 2021, defeating New Zealand 27-12 in the gold medal match.
The Fijians have also won the Men's Rugby World Cup Sevens four times, most recently in South Africa in 2022.
They reached the quarter-finals of last year's 15-a-side Rugby World Cup.
