Trophy Tour Makes Final International Stop

The international element of the Rugby World Cup Trophy Tour drew to a close over the weekend, rounding off a global tour with a three day visit to Paris.

The last event of the Trophy Tour before the Webb Ellis Cup returns to Britain saw the British ambassador to France open the doors to his residence to host 20 children from local clubs and schools for a five-a-side tournament.

Children from a variety of schools were joined by Wales and Racing Metro centre Jamie Roberts for the event.

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British ambassador to France, Sir Peter Ricketts, said: “It was an honour to host the final event on the Rugby World Cup Trophy Tour here in Paris: an exciting part of the build-up to this great tournament. France is a passionate rugby nation and this was shown by the excitement around the Webb Ellis Cup during its visit.”

The tour marked the first time that rugby’s most coveted prize has been showcased around the world and was delivered in partnership with Land Rover and DHL – two long-term supporters of the game and Rugby World Cup 2015 worldwide partners.

On Monday Land Rover drove out of Paris to the famous Champagne region. The latest Least Driven Path was accompanied by Land Rover ambassador and former French International Dimitri Yachvili, a Rugby World Cup finalist in 2011, and the most capped prop in French rugby history, Sylvain Marconnet.

The pair journeyed to Epernay and the surrounding villages, delivering the Webb Ellis Cup to local club Rugby Epernay Champagne, where they joined in a game with children from the club’s youth section.

Land Rover Ambassador Yachvili, who gained 60 caps for his country, commented: “It was a fantastic experience to be able to give the children of Rugby Epernay Champagne the chance to see the Webb Ellis Cup and fun to join in their rugby activity. Seeing their enthusiasm for the game – and some of the skills on show – we might even have witnessed some of the future stars of French rugby in action!”

The final day of the tour kicked off with the very last DHL Rugby vs the World Challenge. After a series of sporting challenges including sumo, gymnastics and polo among others, it was the turn of handball to take on rugby. Legendary France forward and tough tackler Serge Betsen stepped up to challenge national icon and handball superstar Jackson Richardson.

This was the 15th and final stop on the Trophy Tour which has reached the end of its 12 month journey around the world as part of a celebration of rugby. Previously the Webb Ellis Cup has visited Japan, Australia, Fiji, Madagascar, South Africa, Argentina, Uruguay, USA, UAE, China, Italy, Romania, Canada and Germany.