Plans for the annual Women's International Invitational 7s tournament in Las Vegas from February 10-12, are also well advanced with the confirmed teams expected to be announced this week.

Women’s rugby in the USA is set for a hectic few months as 2012 looks to kick off with a number of high profile activities.

An elite camp for 120 of the country’s top players is set to be held next week in Florida which includes the senior women’s national 15s and 7s side as well as the top US college players.

It’s the first major camp of the year and the four days of training will set the tone for the rest of the year, highlighting the key players who will represent the US throughout the year in various competitions.

Sevens rugby is also a key focus at the moment with the names of the eight players who will become fulltime professionals set to be announced in the coming weeks. The players will live near and have fulltime access to the Olympic Training Centre in Chula Vista, California alongside 15 fulltime male athletes. In granting pro rugby status to its women, USA Rugby will follow in the footsteps of Holland who recently began a fulltime programme for its leading female 7s athletes.

Plans for the annual Women's International Invitational 7s tournament in Las Vegas from February 10-12, are also well advanced with the confirmed teams expected to be announced this week. The competition this year is set to have its strongest representation. Canada won last year’s competition, beating Holland in the final.

The USA played four tests in 2011, winning just one, against South Africa, but were more active on the 7s circuit, competing in Dubai, Las Vegas and their U20s side also completed a Nations Cup schedule.

USA women’s rugby 7s coach Ric Suggitt has included American soccer star and Olympic gold medalist, Natasha Kai in his squad of 14 players to travel to Dubai in early December. The group will train together this weekend at the Olympic Training Center in California to prepare for the tournament.

Kai is a star addition to the squad having gained recognition in the sport with the Hawaii Select side earlier this year in the Women's Las Vegas Sevens tournament.

Four of the other 14 players Suggitt invited to camp (Kelly Griffin, Emilie Bydwell, Katie Dowty, and Nathalie Marchino) are on the list of the top ten try-scorers at the highest level women's club competition in the United States, the Women's Premier League where they scored 31 tries between them.

Some up-and-coming college stars like speedster Rebekah Siebach, Kimber Rozier, and Deven Owsiany will join the team at camp after playing for the USA Women's Developmental sevens side at this summer's Emirates Airline USA Rugby Women's All-Star Sevens Championship.

Siebach, Rozier, and Owsiany were joined by Kaelene Lundstrum on the Developmental Squad, and the four youngsters combined for 22 tries in the All-Star Sevens tournament.

In Dubai, the USA will compete against Australia, South Africa, Canada, England, Brazil, China, and Spain. Following Dubai, the team will then take part in the USA Sevens (Las Vegas: February 10-12, 2012) the Hong Kong Sevens (March 23-25, 2012), and the Amsterdam Sevens (May 19-20, 2012).

WOMEN'S EAGLE SEVENS CAMP ROSTER | NOVEMBER 19-24

Beth Black (NOVA)
Emilie Bydell (San Diego Surfers)
Amy Daniels (Beantown)
Katie Dowty (Beantown)
Corey Fredericks (New Orleans)
Irene Gardner (Berkeley All Blues)
Kelly Griffin (Berkeley All Blues)
Natasha Kai (Hawaiian Select)
Pam Kosanke (Chicago North Shore)
Kaelene Lundstrum (Twin Cities Amazons)
Nathalie Marchino (Berkeley All Blues)
Deven Owsiany (Penn State)
Kimber Rozier (UNC- Chapel Hill)
Rebekah Siebach (Women's Cougar Rugby)