HONG KONG – California rugby will have three representatives of the Blue & Gold at the Hong Kong Sevens tournament set to take place Nov. 4-6 in Causeway Bay, Hong Kong. The iconic event, which usually takes place in the springtime, returns to the world stage in 2022 after a three-year hiatus due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
 
Three former Golden Bears – Ken Kurihara '20, Sam Walsh '22 and Russell Webb '17 – have been named to team rosters from three different countries slated to play on the HK 7's pitch. Kurihara will play for Japan's squad and Webb for host-team Hong Kong, while Walsh will make his first appearance as a USA Eagle since his recent graduation from Cal this past spring.
 
Kurihara was a two-time national champion in his time at Cal. He was part of the 2017 fifteen's and seven's squads that clinched the Penn Mutual Varsity Cup and CRC 7s titles. The scrumhalf/flyhalf was a key player and leader for the Bears, especially in the 2020 and 2021 abbreviated seasons when he played in a combined 11 matches and logged 3 tries and 20 conversions.
 
Walsh was another key component of the Bears' starting lineup in his time at Cal. As a freshman in 2018, Walsh made seven starts, including in the 2018 national championship match versus Life University and in the national semifinal match versus Saint Mary's when he scored a try and went 4-for-4 in conversions. The flyhalf was also central to Cal's last three-consecutive PAC 7s titles. His appearance with the USA Eagles this weekend will be his first time competing professionally in international contests since his graduation in May of 2022.
 
Webb was a seven-time national champion (five in 7s, two in XVs) and two-time First Team All-American in both XVs and 7s in his time as a Golden Bear. Webb was also named Man of the Match at the 2016 national championships and PAC Player of the Year in his final season. The former team captain and flyhalf led the team to its sweep of the national championships in 2017. At the 2017 national championships he collected 18 points with two tries, four conversions and one penalty conversion to aid the Bears in their 43-13 victory over Arkansas State. He then capped his collegiate career with 60 points scored (four tries, 20 conversions) in the six-match tournament of the CRC 7s to lead the team to victory. Webb has had a very active career playing professional rugby for Hong Kong since leaving Cal, including captaining the squad on numerous occasions, most recently in the Rugby World Cup Sevens tournament in September of this year.
 
"The Hong Kong Sevens is such a significant sporting experience," Cal head coach Jack Clark said. "What a great honor it is for this trio to represent their countries. All said, it couldn't happen to better young men and alumni of our university. We're so proud of them."
 
Walsh and Kurihara will go head-to-head in the second day of pool play at the HK 7s when Team USA faces Team Japan at 11:50 p.m. ET. A full tournament schedule can be found here. Fans can watch the event live on Peacock.
 
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