Japan Women and Hong Kong China Men Defend ARESS 2026 Titles

The Asia Rugby Emirates Sevens Series (ARESS) 2026 concluded in Colombo, Sri Lanka, at the Racecourse Ground and the Japan women won Leg 2 to defend their Series title in an undefeated campaign, while the Japan men won the second leg, beating Series winners and defending champions, Hong Kong China, in the final.

Photo Credit – Asia Rugby – ARESS 2026 Leg 2 Champions Japan

Japan Sakura 7s defeated their closest rivals China 14-7 to claim the Leg and the Series and now turn their attention to the HSBC SVNS, which gets underway in Dubai at the end of November.

The Chinese women, as runners-up in Asia, will head to the same location for SVNS 3, which Asia Rugby said over the weekend would take place in the days preceding the Emirates Dubai SVNS.

Sakura 7s Head Coach Yuka Kanematsu said, “We began building our team for this tournament just four days after the Asian Games, and we entered this tournament with 13 players from diverse backgrounds, including five players making their debut.

This tournament also presented many first-time experiences for the players, but they displayed high levels of concentration from the very first match and grew into a fantastic team with each game. I am truly proud of the players who contributed to our three victories in this Asian series.”

Hong Kong China beat Kazakhstan 14-5 to win bronze and finish 3rd in the Series.

Photo Credit – Asia Rugby – ARESS 2026 Leg 2 Champions Japan

In the Men’s final, Japan managed to get some revenge and inflict a rare defeat on the Hong Kong China men, winning 28-14. The two sides meet often, and it’s rarely dull, but Japan were deserved winners this time around. Hong Kong China finished with a superior Series points differential to defend the Series title and will also head to SVNS 3.

Phil Greening, Head Coach of Japan Men’s Sevens, said, “This victory in the tournament is valuable because it demonstrates the team’s ability to adapt to different situations and the success of this program, which provides opportunities for young players to shine.

Although the Asian Games ended in disappointment, the players learned from that experience, remained united, and continued to trust in our preparation and coaching philosophy. They fought as one, demonstrating the skill and will to win, maintaining a consistently high standard, and delivering results when opportunities arose. The next challenge is to make this the standard, not an exception.”

HKCR men’s sevens coach Jevon Groves reflected via HKCR, “Obviously, we’re disappointed with the loss. The boys looked pretty fatigued. It’s been quite a tough campaign for them, and I think the contact area was probably the difference. They were just a little bit better at that; they got a few kickoff bounces, and I think it was an accumulation of things, it’s been a tough campaign.

I think it’s good for us that we’ve had a loss in this way. It’ll make us reflect and think a little bit deeper about our game and how we can get better. We need to have a week off now, and then we’ll regroup and get ready to prepare for the challenger (SVNS 3), which will be an exciting prospect and an opportunity for other boys to step up and grow, which is exciting for the depth of the programme.”

China defeated Thailand 12-21 to win bronze in Colombo and also finish 3rd in the Series.

There were plenty of surprises – squad rotations by some teams and fatigue after a busy season contributed. The Thailand Men were excellent and had a 4th-placed finish in Colombo – their highest ever finish. The Kazakhstan women defeated Thailand in the quarter-final to reach a first Semifinal in a few seasons, and India then defeated the Thais to finish 5th for their highest finish. The Singapore Women also showed grit to defeat the UAE on golden points and end 7th.

Also a special mention to Sri Lanka’s Men’s player Srinath Sooriyabandara, who retires from international rugby after an 18-year international career.

The Iran and Sri Lanka Women, and Uzbekistan and India Men, are relegated to the Trophy Series.

Cup Finals – ARESS 2026 Leg 2 Colombo

Men’s Final – Hong Kong China 14-28 Japan

Photo Credit – Asia Rugby – ARESS 2026 Leg 2 Champions Japan Men

These two go tit for tat every game, and the win for Japan – who, to be fair, were the best Men’s side all weekend – saw them claim leg 2 and finish 2nd overall in the Series.

2 tries from Yuma Nakagawa (Japan scored 4 tries to 2) helped seal the win. Max Denmark and Matt Worley scored for Hong Kong China; Denmark ended the highest try scorer in Colombo with 10.

In the past 5 fixtures in all competitions this year (Melrose Challenge, Asian Games and ARESS), HKCR lead the head-to-head 3-2 in 2026 (by our count).

In the ARESS, though, we think it’s the 1st loss for HKCR Men in at least 2 seasons, but they did enough on the Series points differential (+363 vs +343 for Japan) to still claim the Series and will head to SVNS 3.

Women’s Cup Final – Japan 14-7 China

Photo Credit – JRFU – ARESS 2026 Colombo Women’s Cup Final

It was a very close game, and China had a chance after the hooter to score and level the game, but inexperience led to some poor decision- making.

Captain Rinka Matsuda and S. Ohashi scored for Japan, while Yue Sun scored all 7 Chinese points.

Rinka Matsuda, Captain of Japan 7s for this leg and a Sakura XV player, said, “We are truly happy to have been able to finish the series with a championship. From the pre-tournament training camp, we focused on each player showcasing their strengths.

In the tournament, all the players were able to demonstrate their strengths, and as the matches progressed, the team’s cohesion improved, allowing us to grow as a team.”

Both teams made a lot of changes from the Asian Games and Leg 1, and they were still far too good for the rest of Asia. Japan finished the season undefeated to defend the title, and China finished 2nd in the Series and will head to SVNS 3.

Top Scorers – ARESS 2026 Leg 2 Colombo

Max Denmark was the Leg 2 Men’s top try scorer with 10, just ahead of Thailand’s Ben Paltridge, who scored 8 times. His haul helped Thailand achieve a best-ever fourth-place finish in the Series. Mohammad Bandari from the UAE scored 7, one more than Japanese Yuma Nakagawa, who scored a brace in the Cup Final win.

Amina Tulegenova, for the vastly improved Kazakhstan Nomads (who finished 4th), was the top Women’s try scorer with 7 tries, just one ahead of Chinese (Cup final scorer) Yue Sun. Six players were tied on 5 tries – two from Hong Kong China and 4 from China. (6 of the top 10 try scorers in the Women’s Division in Colombo were Chinese).

Photo Credit – Asia Rugby – ARESS 2026 Champions HKCR Men

Series Final Standings ARESS 2026

It was confirmed in an Asia Rugby post that the respective women’s and men’s winners of the upcoming Trophy Series West & Central (Jordan) and East (Chinese Taipei) will earn promotion to the Asia Rugby Emirates Sevens Series 2027.

Women

1. Japan (Champions)
2. China (Qualified for SVNS 3)
3. Hong Kong China
4. Thailand
5. Kazakhstan
6. India
7. UAE
8. Singapore
9. Malaysia
10. Uzbekistan
11. Sri Lanka (relegated)
12. Iran (relegated)

All of the Women’s results from Colombo can be seen here.

Men

1. Hong Kong China (Qualified for SVNS 3)
2. Japan
3. China
4. Thailand
5. Korea
6. Sri Lanka
7. UAE
8. Malaysia
9. Singapore
10. Kazakhstan
11. India (relegated)
12. Uzbekistan (relegated)

All of the Men’s results from Colombo can be seen here.

We posted throughout the weekend on our social media channels with updates and photos, so please visit our social platforms for more.

Asian Rugby 7s News 2026

• Asia Rugby Emirates Sevens Series 2026 Leg 2 Colombo Preview.
• Asian Games 2026 Winners.
• Japan Women and Hong Kong China Men Retain Top Spot in ARESS 2026 Leg 1.
• Asia Rugby 7s 2026 National Team Tournament Dates & Venues Guide.