International Rugby Board

BYU rugby assistant coach to attend elite coaching clinic

PROVO — BYU rugby assistant coach Kimball Kjar has been selected by USA Rugby to attend Talent Optimization Program (TOP) of the International Rugby Board (IRB), the international governing body of rugby in South Africa.

IRB's TOP is an elite-level coaching clinic designed to supplement the IRB's coaching development program. Participants will not only cover top level coaching education material, but also instruction on the business side of of the modern game of rugby.

Only 10 coaching participants are selected to attend, and applicants came from all over the world.

Coaches and instructors at IRB's TOP include some of the biggest names in the game of rugby, like Jake White, who coached South Africa to its 2007 Rugby World Cup championship. Others attending will be Rassie Erasmus, former star Springbok and current Western Province Stormers head coach, and Mark Harrington, IRB's head of training development.

Kjar and fellow TOP participants will work at the renowned Stellenbosch University, South Africa's Notre Dame of rugby.

USA Rugby CEO Nigel Melville said supporting Kjar's nomination to the elite level coaching program was an easy one.

"We are delighted that Kimball has accepted this opportunity to work with some of the world's best coach educators and to work alongside a group of coaches from across the world," Melville commented."Kimball has international playing experience and he is now developing into a fine coach, and this course will help him to develop his own coaching style and practice for future contributions to the development of the game here in the USA."

Kjar's rugby track record started at BYU where he walked on as a freshman in 1996, only to make the team and start as a flanker for the entire season.

An LDS mission to Brisbane, Australia, saw Kjar's rugby appreciation grow. Upon returning in 1999, he was quickly moved to into the USA Men's National Team (known as the Eagles) in 2001 and was a three-time All-American from 2001-2003.

With more than 20 appearances over a six-year career with the USA Eagles, Kjar finished his playing career in 2007 where he joined his alma mater BYU as an assistant coach that same year.

Kjar helped the Cougars to their first national title in 2009 and has since moved on to work with the Collegiate All-Americans as an assistant coach since 2009.

BYU head coach David Smyth supported his assistant's selection to IRB's Talent Optimization Program, saying it speaks to Kjar's abilities and the growth of the BYU rugby program.

Rugby World Cup - Argentina 2023: 2010 IRB Junior World Championship

The IRB Junior World Championship is an international rugby union competition held once a year in a different country. It has the purpose of giving future stars the opportunity of competing for their country against future stars from other countries to act as a feeder to the international level. The tournament features the best 12 teams from the world who compete in three groups of four and is followed by a play-offs series in which a champion is crowned and all competing teams finish with an official placing. The event is organised by the governing body of rugby, the International Rugby Board (IRB). The inaugural tournament was held in June 2008 by Wales and it replaced the former IRB Under 19 and IRB Under 21 World Championships. In only the tournaments third year of existence, Argentina was selected as the host nation in a move to underline Argentina´s credentials as a future Rugby World Cup host. Argentina hosted the event in region of the Entre Rios and Santa Fé provinces located north west of Buenos Aires. There were three host venues including Santa Fé City´s Estadio Brigadier General Estanislao López stadium (32,500), the Club Atlético Estudiantes (16,740) in Paraná and the Estadio Newell's Old Boys (39,121) in Rosario. The attendances were positive with the crowds of the opening weekend breaking records set in earlier tournaments. The host nation finished in sixth place with New Zealand winning the event. Below the IRB Junior World Championship is another, the  IRB Junior World Rugby Trophy , which features eight teams to, like the Rugby World Cup, bring the total number of competing sides up to 20 teams. The inaugural tournament also took place in 2008 and South America was selected to host with the eevnt taking place in Sanitago, Chile . The tournament was won by Uruguay who defeated Chile 20-8 in the final to underline the potential that exists in South American rugby. The onfield success of South American sides in the Junior World Championship and Junior World Trophy combined with the successful hosting of the tournaments themselves provide further encouragement for Argentina 2023 to become a reality.

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