Skyridge High School senior Lavinia "Lavi" Lomu is a member of the USA Women’s U18s Sevens squad that will represent Team USA at the 2026 Youth Olympic Games in Dakar, Senegal. The games are scheduled to begin this week, with rugby sevens included as one of the 12 sports on the program.
The 2026 Youth Olympic Games will welcome 2,700 top young athletes competing across 151 events starting on October 31. The rugby sevens matches are scheduled for November 1 and November 2, with the squad's action beginning this Sunday, November 1. The team, co-captained by Abbey McGettigan and Luisa Moala, will participate in a three-day round robin, with medal matches taking place on November 3. Matches will be streamed on Olympics.com and the NBC Olympics Network.
Lomu is a member of the United Rugby Club in Utah. This summer, she played high-level ball with her home club, the Utah Cannibals, and at the Chula Vista Elite Athlete Training Center as a member of the USA Pathways. The USA Rugby Women’s Sevens side joins a 29-athlete USOPC delegation competing across 12 sports.
Daniel Smith, Director of Summer Games at the USOPC and Team USA Chef de Mission, stated that the Youth Olympic Games provide an important milestone for young athletes to represent Team USA and gain international experience. This event marks the fourth edition of the Summer Youth Olympic Games and the first since Buenos Aires 2018.
The selected squad was chosen through a multi-phase qualification framework by coaches and staff from the USA Women’s Sevens Pathways. Athletes earned invitations to High Performance Evaluation Camps after participating in domestic competitions or USA Rugby Pathway Talent ID and Regional Development Days.
