‘Insane for sevens’: France player reacts to Louis Bielle-Biarrey report

France representative Luca Mignot has briefly looked ahead to the possibility of Louis Bielle-Biarrey making the switch to sevens in time for the 2028 LA Olympics, following a report suggesting the 15s star was interested in a move. 

Bielle-Biarrey could follow in the footsteps of France teammate Antoine Dupont, who helped Les Bleus Sevens win the 2024 HSBC SVNS Grand Final in Madrid. Dupont then starred as France claimed gold at the Paris Olympics in front of a sold-out Stade de France crowd. 

RMC Sport understands that Bielle-Biarrey, who is negotiating a new deal with two-time Champions Cup winners Union Bordeaux-Begles, wants to represent France at the Games. This would come as a major boost to the side, with Bielle-Biarrey considered one of the world’s best rugby players. 

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Bielle-Biarrey was named the 2026 Six Nations Men’s Player of the Year after crossing for nine tries in five appearances. The 22-year-old continues to stand out back at club land, touching down for more than 20 tries across the 2025/26 Top 14 and Champions Cup campaigns. 

France finished the HSBC SVNS regular season in fifth despite a strong start, which included a silver medal in Singapore. Bielle-Biarrey’s potential switch is just reports and speculation at this stage, but Mignot did say it would “be insane for sevens.” 

“Dupont brought a lot to us, to France Sevens, to sevens, more exposure to the public. If [Bielle-Biarrey] comes I have no idea. I think he’ll be the same,” France’s Luca Mignot told RugbyPass. 

“He’ll have to work hard, earn his ticket for the Olympics and then probably there will be some build up around him and it could be insane for sevens.

“He would bring competition between the boys and just raise the standards.” 

France have secured their place in the HSBC SVNS Bordeaux quarter-finals, having recovered from an opening-round defeat to New Zealand. Roderick Solo scored a final-play winner as the All Blacks Sevens secured a 26-21 win. 

Les Bleus Sevens bounced back with a hard-earned 17-point win over Los Pumas Sevens, before punching their ticket to the Cup knockouts with victory against Germany. Enahemo Artaud was the try-scoring hero in that final pool match, finishing with a double. 

“For some of the boys it’s our first time [playing a SVNS event] in France so we want to embrace it, but at the same time not be overcome by the added pressure,” Mignot reflected. 

“We just use it to fuel our energy and we need to focus on the principles, stay all together and play our game.” 

“We played a very good game against New Zealand but anything can happen in sevens, we saw that,” 

“We just went to focus. We took some great learnings, just to be more focused on our breakdowns.” 

France will take on SVNS Valladolid champions Australia in the Bordeaux quarter-finals, after they defeated Spain on Saturday morning. The Aussies held on for a nail-biting result, following a loss to the USA late on day one. 

South Africa are on the cusp of winning the HSBC SVNS World Championship after sneaking into the quarter-finals. They will take on Fiji in the second men’s quarter-final, who defeated the Blitzboks in the last round of group matches. 

New Zealand face Great Britain on the other side of the draw, while the USA look to keep their top eight hopes alive against Spain. The USA beat Spain by five points on day one at Stade Atlantique, setting the scene for a season-defining elimination match.