Relegated but unbowed, Abbie Brown targets 2028 LA Olympics with Great Britain

Abbie Brown is refusing to consider retirement after Great Britain became the first team relegated from the top division of the HSBC SVNS Series under its new three-tier format, with the two-time Olympian already focused on returning the side to the 2028 Los Angeles Games.

The 2025-26 season was a bruising one for GB, who fielded around 25 new caps across the campaign. Brown, who has represented her country at both the 2016 Rio and 2020 Tokyo Olympics, acknowledged the scale of the challenge ahead but pointed to the experience accumulated this season as a foundation for the next generation.

“It’s shown just how fit you have to be for sevens now,” Brown told Olympics.com. “Your high-speed metres, ability to tackle repeatedly in the same passage of play, constantly tracking back in warm weather — which we don’t experience while training in the UK.”

For Brown, the difficulties of integrating so many new players have sharpened her thinking on leadership rather than dimmed her appetite for the game.

“For me, leadership is about getting the best out of people, showing compassion, and treating everyone as an individual,” she said. “My message this season was that it had to be bigger than us, as we want to stay on the series.”

Now 10 years into her sevens career, Brown is candid about what keeps her going — including an unusual relationship with the sport’s physical demands.

“People say that maybe I’ve got a bit of a screw loose because I absolutely love going to those dark times when you’re on the pitch and you’re so tired you can’t see straight, you are knackered, you’re putting your body on the line, fighting to win a rugby match,” she said. “I love how hard you have to work in sevens… I’ve put my heart and soul into it for the last 10 years and I think for me it’s a higher purpose, and I still enjoy it. I’m not ready to hang up my boots.”

With relegation confirmed, the road back to the top tier — and ultimately to Los Angeles — will be steep. But Brown is embracing the challenge rather than shying away from it.

“In order to get to LA, I just think it’s going to be a hell of a journey, but what a story it would be if we could get there,” she said. “The U.S. will put on an amazing event, so I definitely want to keep going. I want to get to another Olympics, and showcase what we’re about in sevens and what Great Britain can do.”