The global rugby family has joined the international sporting community in celebrating #OlympicDay as excitement builds ahead of rugby sevens' Olympic Games debut at Rio 2016.

With 43 days to go until the Games, preparations are on track for very special and successful rugby sevens events and World Rugby has been leading the #OlympicDay celebrations across the rugby family as players and fans alike express their excitement.

With a record number of one million children getting into rugby in 2015, the Rio 2016 Olympic Games will provide a golden opportunity for rugby to reach, engage and inspire new participants and fans to get active and have fun through rugby.

To mark Olympic Day, World Rugby has launched its This is rugby sevens educational video and updated Rugby Builds Character videos in four languages to share with and engage and inspire the global rugby family.

What is Sevens?
New to Rugby Sevens? This quick video tells you everything you need to know, from its accidental creation by a butcher's boy in Scotland to the Olympic sport it has become today.

World Rugby Chairman Bernard Lapasset said: "Sport is about bringing people together, having fun and getting active. It has the power to drive social change through its strong values and today we join our friends from around the world in celebration of sport.

"Olympic inclusion is already proving to be a game-changer for our sport as a catalyst for growth and we have no doubt Rio 2016 will captivate and inspire new audiences and participants through the dynamic, exciting and fan-focused discipline of rugby sevens.”

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Rugby's road to Rio – a 92-year journey – is entering the final straight. Last weekend, Spain claimed the 12th and final available place in the men's competition in dramatic circumstances, defeating top seeds Samoa in the last play of the final, while the remaining women's qualifier will be determined in Dublin, Ireland, this weekend where 16 teams will compete to book their place on sport's biggest stage.

Lapasset continued: "As we near the Olympic Games, World Rugby is anticipating very exciting, very competitive and very successful men's and women's events. The stage is set for a vibrant and global celebration of our sport and its character-building values. The teams are ready. The rugby world is ready. All roads lead to Rio.”

On Olympic Day, rugby stars from around the globe have been spreading the word on social media and expressing their excitement ahead of Rio 2016. You can join the conversation and view highlights of Rugby's #OlympicDay events at www.worldrugby.org.