Henry Pollock: Rugby Star Confirms Plans to Switch Sports in Bid to Compete at 2028 Olympics

• England flanker Henry Pollock confirmed his ambition to play for Great Britain Sevens at the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics
• The 21-year-old Northampton Saints star cited Antoine Dupont's Paris 2024 gold medal as inspiration for a potential switch to sevens
• Pollock's Olympic dream faces a significant hurdle, with Great Britain not even guaranteed to qualify for the Games

Henry Pollock has publicly confirmed that representing Great Britain Sevens at the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics is an ambition he wants to fulfil, speaking during a Q&A session on his newly launched YouTube channel.

The 21-year-old Northampton Saints flanker, who signed a contract extension keeping him at Franklin's Gardens until at least 2029, addressed questions about his long-term career goals. He identified the 2027 Rugby World Cup as his immediate priority before turning his attention to the possibility of a sevens switch.

"Hopefully. I don't know yet how it will work but it's definitely something that I want to do in my career," Pollock said. "Seeing what Antoine Dupont did in the last Olympics, it's definitely given me some motivation to go out and play. I just need to take it step-by-step and hope that it all fits in place and naturally happens. But, definitely, that's something that I'm aspiring to do."

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**Dupont's Gold Inspires Pollock**

France scrum-half Dupont famously set aside the 15-a-side game for several months ahead of Paris 2024 to concentrate exclusively on sevens. The gamble proved decisive, with France defeating two-time Olympic champions Fiji on home soil to claim gold. That outcome appears to have left a lasting impression on Pollock.

His agent Eddie Hearn had previously hinted at Pollock's interest in the format, but the player has now confirmed it himself. Pollock is one of only two rugby players on the books at Matchroom Talent Agency, alongside Scotland fly-half Finn Russell.

**Great Britain Face Qualification Battle**

The Olympic ambition carries significant uncertainty. Great Britain did not qualify for the Paris Games and are no longer part of the eight-team top tier of the SVNS circuit, making a place at Los Angeles far from assured.

Qualification pathways include four spots through the 2027 SVNS World Championship standings, six via regional routes, and a final place through a repechage scheduled for June 2028. The United States qualify automatically as tournament hosts.

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Should Great Britain secure qualification, any decision to incorporate established XVs players such as Pollock would need to balance recognising the players who contributed to qualifying in the first place.

Pollock's rise has been rapid. Since making his England debut, he became the youngest player to score a Six Nations try for England, toured with the British and Irish Lions, and was part of the Northampton side that won the Gallagher Premiership.

Source: Briefly News