The Blitzboks were crowned HSBC SVNS World Champions for a second consecutive season after a dramatic day of action at the Bordeaux Sevens in France.South Africa secured the world title following a hard-fought 14-12 quarter-final victory over Fiji, while their closest challengers, Argentina and Australia, both failed to progress to the semi-finals.

The achievement adds the SVNS World Championship crown to the SVNS Series title already won earlier in the season and confirms South Africa's dominance in international sevens rugby.The road to the title was far from straightforward.Earlier on Saturday, the Blitzboks suffered a narrow 15-12 defeat to Fiji in their final pool match, placing their championship hopes in doubt.However, a valuable losing bonus point ensured qualification for the quarter-finals and set up an immediate rematch against the Fijians.The title race shifted in South Africa's favour when New Zealand defeated Argentina 24-21, eliminating one of the main contenders.

With Australia also falling short of the semi-finals, the equation became simple: a quarter-final victory over Fiji would secure the world championship.Fiji started strongly and raced into a 12-0 lead, taking advantage of an early yellow card shown to Ryan Oosthuizen.The Blitzboks responded after a Fijian player was yellow-carded, allowing Sebastiaan Jobb to score.Ricardo Duarttee converted to reduce the deficit before half-time.In the second half, South Africa used the extra space effectively and Jobb crossed for his second try.Duarttee's conversion put the Blitzboks ahead 14-12.A determined defensive effort in the closing stages preserved the lead and confirmed the title.

Having already won tournaments in Cape Town, Perth, Vancouver, Hong Kong and Singapore during the season, the Blitzboks completed one of the most successful campaigns in their history and advanced to face France in the semi-finals of the Bordeaux tournament.