New Smyrna Beach rugby sevens player heading to Paris 2024 Olympics

YOU HEARD OF RUGBY SEVENS? A RUGBY SEVENS PLAYER FROM NEW SMYRNA BEACH IS HEADING TO THE OLYMPICS FOR THE THIRD TIME THIS SUMMER. PERRY BAKER TELLS WESH 2’S SANIKA DANGE HE HOPES HIS FINAL APPEARANCE WILL RESULT IN HIS FIRST MEDAL. YOU CAN’T TAKE THE FLORIDA BOY OUT, MAN. BUT ON FLORIDA TO THE HEART OF ME. UM, NEWS SMYRNA BEACH, WHERE I GREW UP, PERRY BAKER IS PROUD OF HIS CENTRAL FLORIDA ROOTS. THE RUGBY SEVENS PLAYER MAY CALL SAN DIEGO HOME NOW, BUT HIS LOVE OF THE HOME OF THE MOUSE RUNS DEEP. I ASK THE QUESTION LIKE, IF YOU COULD HAVE THE OLYMPIC GAMES ANYWHERE, OR YOU CAN HAVE A RUGBY TOURNAMENT ANYWHERE, WHAT WOULD YOU HAVE IT? I’D DEFINITELY TAKE IT BACK TO DISNEY WORLD, WORLD OF SPORTS FOR SURE. LIKE THEREFORE MY ENTIRE FAMILY, EVERYONE CAN COME BECAUSE IT’S RIGHT THERE. THE 37 YEAR OLD IS ONE OF THE VETERAN PLAYERS ON A RELATIVELY YOUNG U.S. TEAM. THE SPORT CONSISTING OF SEVEN PLAYERS PLAYING SEVEN MINUTE HALVES INSTEAD OF THE USUAL 15 PLAYERS PLAYING 40 MINUTES HALVES, A SPORT BAKER SAYS HAS ALREADY EVOLVED SINCE HE STARTED. OH MAN, IT’S CHANGED A LOT DRASTICALLY. IT CHANGED A LOT. I MEAN, THEY HAVE LIKE THE MAJOR LEAGUE RUGBY GOING ON NOW. LIKE WHEN I WAS GROWING UP, I NEVER HEARD OF IT, BUT THEN WHEN I DID HEAR OF IT, THEY WERE MEN. LEAGUES LIKE CLUBS, ONLY. BAKER IS THE ALL TIME LEADING SCORER FOR THE U.S. AND CONSIDERED ONE OF THE BEST RUGBY SEVENS PLAYERS OF ALL TIME. BUT HE’S GOT SOME INTERESTING ADVICE FOR HIS OWN KIDS. DON’T PLAY PROFESSIONALLY WITHOUT A BACKUP PLAN. I WANT THEM TO PLAY SPORTS AS TEENAGERS AND STUFF BECAUSE YOU LEARN SO MUCH. IT TEACHES YOU SO MUCH THROUGH SPORTS. BUT AS A PROFESSIONAL, IT’S LIKE, HAVE SOMETHING ELSE TO DO, LIKE DO SOMETHING ELSE. LIKE IT’S WORTH, IT’LL BE WORTH IT. LIKE IF I HAD ANOTHER OPPORTUNITY AND I WOULDN’T SAY I WOULDN’T CHANGE WHAT I DID, BUT IF I HAD ANOTHER PLAN THAT WAS SET UP, I COULD HAVE BEEN DONE. PROBABLY YEARS AGO, TO BE HONEST, AND JUST STARTED DOING WHAT I WANT TO DO WITH SOMETHING ELSE THAT MAKES ME HAPPY. RIGHT NOW I’M RETIRING AND HERE I AM LIKE, I DON’T KNOW WHAT I’M GOING TO DO. LIKE, I KNOW WHAT I WANT TO DO, BUT I DON’T KNOW IF IT’S GOING TO HAPPEN THE WAY I WANT IT TO HAPPEN, YOU KNOW? AND IT’S LIKE, DANG, LIKE WHAT? AM I FALLING BACK ON THE MEN’S RUGBY TOURNAMENT KICKS OFF TWO DAYS BEFORE THE OPENING CEREMONY. MEDALS WOULD ACTUALLY BE AWARDED ON THE FIRST DAY OF THE PARIS GAMES, AND BAKER SAYS HIS PLAN AFTER THAT IS TO COACH HELPING THE NEXT GENERATION OF RUGBY SEVENS PLAYERS CARRY THE SPORT EV

You've heard of rugby, but have you heard of "rugby sevens?"Perry Baker, a rugby sevens player from New Smyrna Beach, is heading to the Olympics for the third time this summer."You can't take the Florida boy out, but I'm a Florida boy at the heart of it, New Smyrna Beach, where I grew up," Baker said.Perry Baker is proud of his Central Florida roots. The rugby sevens player may call San Diego home now, but his love of the home of the mouse runs deep."I got asked a question: If you could have the Olympic Games anywhere, if you could have a rugby tournament anywhere, where would you have it? I definitely take it back to Disney World for sure. Therefore, my entire family can come because they're right there," Baker said.The 37-year-old is one of the veteran players on a relatively young U.S. team. The sport consists of seven players playing seven-minute halves instead of the usual 15 players playing 40-minute halves. Baker said the sport has already evolved since he started."Oh, man, it's changed a lot drastically. It's changed a lot. I mean, they have, like, the Major League rugby going on now," Baker said. "Like, when I was growing up, I never heard of it. But then, when I did hear of it, there were only leagues like clubs only, you know."Baker is the United States' all-time leading scorer and is considered one of the best rugby sevens players ever.But he has some interesting advice for his own kids: Don't play them professionally without a backup plan."I wouldn't say I wouldn't change what I did, but I had another plan that was set up I could have been done probably years ago, to be honest, and just started doing what I want to do is something else that makes me happy," Baker said."Right now, I'm retiring, and here I am, like, I don't know what I'm going to do. Like, I know what I want to do. But I don't know if it's going to happen, and it's like, dang, like, what am I falling back on?" Baker said.The men's rugby tournament kicks off two days before the opening ceremony, and medals will be awarded on the first day of the Paris Games.Baker said his plan after that is to coach, helping the next generation of rugby sevens players carry the sport even further.

You've heard of rugby, but have you heard of "rugby sevens?"

Perry Baker, a rugby sevens player from New Smyrna Beach, is heading to the Olympics for the third time this summer.

"You can't take the Florida boy out, but I'm a Florida boy at the heart of it, New Smyrna Beach, where I grew up," Baker said.

Perry Baker is proud of his Central Florida roots. The rugby sevens player may call San Diego home now, but his love of the home of the mouse runs deep.

"I got asked a question: If you could have the Olympic Games anywhere, if you could have a rugby tournament anywhere, where would you have it? I definitely take it back to Disney World for sure. Therefore, my entire family can come because they're right there," Baker said.

The 37-year-old is one of the veteran players on a relatively young U.S. team.

The sport consists of seven players playing seven-minute halves instead of the usual 15 players playing 40-minute halves.

Baker said the sport has already evolved since he started.

"Oh, man, it's changed a lot drastically. It's changed a lot. I mean, they have, like, the Major League rugby going on now," Baker said. "Like, when I was growing up, I never heard of it. But then, when I did hear of it, there were only leagues like clubs only, you know."

Baker is the United States' all-time leading scorer and is considered one of the best rugby sevens players ever.

But he has some interesting advice for his own kids: Don't play them professionally without a backup plan.

"I wouldn't say I wouldn't change what I did, but I had another plan that was set up I could have been done probably years ago, to be honest, and just started doing what I want to do is something else that makes me happy," Baker said.

"Right now, I'm retiring, and here I am, like, I don't know what I'm going to do. Like, I know what I want to do. But I don't know if it's going to happen, and it's like, dang, like, what am I falling back on?" Baker said.

The men's rugby tournament kicks off two days before the opening ceremony, and medals will be awarded on the first day of the Paris Games.

Baker said his plan after that is to coach, helping the next generation of rugby sevens players carry the sport even further.

New Smyrna Beach rugby sevens player heading to Paris 2024 Olympics

Share

Share

Share

Top Picks