The Black Ferns Sevens secured their Olympic gold medal with a 19-12 victory over Canada, marking New Zealand’s first medal of the Paris Games. Trailing 12-7 at halftime, the Tokyo champions rallied with tries from veterans Michaela Blyde and Stacey Waaka to clinch the win.
New Zealand initially took the lead with Risi Pouri-Lane’s try, but Canada surged ahead after a yellow card to Portia Woodman-Wickliffe allowed Chloe Daniels and Alysha Corrigan to score. Blyde’s try and Tyla King’s conversion put New Zealand back in front, followed by Waaka’s decisive long-range try with two minutes remaining.
The match was a closer contest compared to their earlier pool play meeting, where New Zealand won 33-7. It also marked the final sevens internationals for Woodman-Wickliffe and King, who were pivotal in New Zealand’s previous Olympic successes.
