In the first of his monthly columns, New Zealand Sevens coach Gordon Tietjens relives his three Commonwealth Games golds and puts his case for Sevens as the ultimate multisport discipline.

When I took over the New Zealand Sevens team in 1994, the sport was still very young in terms of being global. The big tournaments like Hong Kong and Dubai were established and you had regional tournaments you wanted to go to and win, but the World Series was still five years away - and I had absolutely no idea that Sevens would be going to the Commonwealth Games in 1998.

We're obviously all waiting on whether Sevens gets the nod for the Olympics, but I'll always remember the excitement of going to my first Commonwealth Games as a Sevens coach - it was unbelievable.

There we were, participating in the sport of rugby that we knew and enjoyed so much, but taking part on a different kind of stage and mixing with some of the most elite athletes in the world. It was special.

In Kuala Lumpur in '98, we spent a bit of time with the Australian cricket team, Steve Waugh and people like that, which the guys really enjoyed. Then in Manchester in 2002 we met the players from Manchester United football club, David Beckham and also the coach Alex Ferguson, which was great, and the guys also spent some time with Kim Collins from St Kitts & Nevis - they obviously made a good impression on each other too, because he ended up winning the 100 metres and we got the Gold!

Melbourne too, the individual athletes are hard to remember because there were so many greats but just the atmosphere in the player's village and the team spirit with the rest of the New Zealanders is something you take away with you, everyone getting behind each other, being supportive and also getting the chance to attend some of the other sports.

The anatomy of an elite athlete

That first Commonwealth Games also brought home for a lot of the players just what an elite athlete looked like, and how they trained.

Eating together, using the gymnasiums together and rubbing shoulders with the participants at all those different disclipines was an experience and the players loved the challenge that it brought.

I've always been focused on fitness - I believe fit teams get you the results you want - and I'm quite ruthless in preparing teams, so when you go to a multi-sport games you see all the work that the athletes do, not only in the gym and on the track but the sacrifices they make in terms of nutrition, it's huge and I think my players learnt a lot from what they saw.

They work very hard to peak and be at their best for that every four years and I think they would be fitter than most of the athletes in their respective sports. Obviously you've got your marathon runners and triathletes, who reach very high levels of fitness, but in terms of team sports my players would be fitter than most, and they're also fitter than any other rugby players in New Zealand.

One of my sayings is that you've got to empty the tank and any player who plays for me at the Commonwealth Games, or on the World Series, has to be ready to commit himself to making those sacrifices, to empty the tank.

Gold

Because then they get the rewards, and as a coach there's nothing better than standing there and watching your side being presented with Gold medals and listening to your national anthem to the raising of the flag.

I remember every one, the first time in Kuala Lumpur, then Manchester and doing the same there, and then in Melbourne four years later in 2006 - we won all three, which makes me very proud. Now we've got Delhi coming up in 2010 and I will certainly be going there to try and win a fourth Gold.

Rugby's culture and ideals go hand in hand with these multi-sport games - the hard work ethic, team play, fair play, a hard line on anti-doping, and hopefully that will also give us success in our bid to reach the Olympics.

Most of all though, I believe Sevens gives rugby players and fans the opportunity to express themselves in a wonderful way. It's colourful and fast, you see tries and constant action, the players are true athletes and it's proven to be a major success for the Comm Games in terms of getting people into the stadium, so I think it's ready-made for the Olympics.

Right now, though, I must admit that it's another Olympic sport taking up most of my spare time. With that win at the French Open under his belt, I'm really enjoying watching Roger Federer at Wimbledon. Now there's a great champion..