Emil Signes
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| University | MIT, Lehigh University, Rutgers University | ||||||||||||||||||||
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Emil Signes (born 1940) is a former coach for the United States national rugby sevens team.[1][2][3][4] He also facilitated the inclusion of the rugby sevens in the Olympics,[5] due to his promotion of women's rugby worldwide.[5] He is the founder and coach of Atlantis, an invitational 7s rugby team for developing rugby talent among both men and women.[6]
Signes is often referred to as "The Emperor"[7] for his work growing and expanding the game of rugby sevens worldwide. In the official magazine for the first Rugby World Cup Sevens in 1993, he was profiled among leaders in rugby sevens and called an "international legend."[8] With regard to the inclusion of rugby sevens in the Olympics:
"Rugby would not be an Olympic sport without the women, and women would not have an international sevens presence were it not for one man – Emil Signes."
— Alex Goff (American rugby sports writer and commentator), 2009[5]
This is in line with the International Olympic Committee's focus of advancing the cause of women in sport.[9]