Friday, November 3rd, 2023.- Chile left a good impression but couldn't overcome Canada's experience in the opening match of their participation in female's rugby 7’s at the 2023 Pan American Games. The match took place this morning at the Estadio Municipal de La Pintana, in the southwestern part of the Chilean capital. The two-time continental champions (Canada) secured a 36-0 victory with seven tries.

The Canadian team made the most of their differences, even though “Las Cóndores” (Chile) opted for a physical style of play in the first half. The home team barely got close to the North American in-goal area but had the enthusiastic support of around a thousand spectators who applauded Catalina Villarroel's final effort to score a try in overtime. Ultimately, Canada closed out the match and added their last points unopposed.

As a result, Chile finds itself in a challenging situation in Group B, as they will need to defeat Brazil and Mexico in the afternoon matches (at 4:15 and 7:35 p.m., respectively) to keep their hopes alive for reaching the medal round, which will take place on Saturday.

It's worth noting that the Brazilian team had a dominant debut with a 47-0 victory over the Mexican team. In other matches of the day, part of Group A, the United States defeated Jamaica 44-0, while Colombia overcame Paraguay with a score of 32-7.

Written by Rodrigo Parragué y Nicolás Olea; translated by Pía Barriga / Photosport
Photo by Cristian Soto/Santiago 2023 / Photosport