Palamo, Pinkelman return to Eagles for Paris

CHULA VISTA, Calif. - Nate Ebner's road to Rio 2016 continues following selection to Mike Friday's Men's Eagles Sevens squad for HSBC Paris Sevens May 13-15.

The penultimate round of the 2015-16 HSBC World Rugby Sevens Series - the first leg France has hosted since the 2005-06 season - will kick off just 85 days prior to Rugby Sevens' debut at the Rio 2016 Olympic Summer Games. Friday has utilized 21 athletes on the Series in eight tournaments, with Ebner the most recent to make his debut in Singapore earlier this month.

The New England Patriot scored two tries at The National Stadium in a defeat of Portugal and filled in on the wing for an injured Carlin Isles, who remains unavailable for selection to the touring squad.

Thretton Palamo's performance with the USA Falcons at the Las Vegas Invitational tournament alongside HSBC USA Sevens - the U.S.'s home leg of the Series in Las Vegas - propelled him to the next week's Eagles squad in Vancouver. Though he was not part of the team that traveled to Asia, he has earned himself another call-up to the first team for Paris.

Also returning to the squad after some time away is Ben Pinkelman, who returned to Colorado State University in April to complete his school commitments. The 21-year-old made his debut this season and had been selected to each subsequent tournament prior to Cathay Pacific / HSBC Hong Kong Sevens.

The Eagles will fly to London May 6 before jaunting over to France for the ninth round of this year's Series. They will stay there for Marriott London Sevens a week later, May 21-22, while a USA Falcons squad of 12 will head to Paris for the three-day Howard Hinton 7s tournament. The Falcons squad has not yet been chosen.

"There may well be changes to the squad that comes to London to ensure all get what we need from the two weeks as we build towards Rio,' Friday said. "However, we have high expectations of ourselves and expect to be competing both weekends, and are not looking at this as a split tour of performance and development.'

The Eagles will again meet Canada and host France in Pool D following a win and loss, respectively, against the two in pool play at HSBC Singapore Sevens. Friday's charges' first matchup of the season against Argentina ended in their favor in Hong Kong, and they will have another chance to keep the South Americans from encroaching on the U.S.'s fifth-place position in the Series standings.

"It's a tough pool in Paris but nothing that should fear us if we apply ourselves and prepare to the best of our ability,' Friday said. "We have shown on a number of occasions if we apply ourselves that we are more than capable of topping this group. It is down to us as a squad to perform and, if we don't, then we will come unstuck.'

Men's Eagles Sevens | HSBC Paris Sevens

1. Nate Ebner

5. Zack Test

7. Folau Niua

8. Maka Unufe

9. Nate Augspurger

10. Madison Hughes (C)

11. Perry Baker