A Brighton school’s choir has been selected to welcome Japan to Rugby World Cup 2015.
Westdene Primary School’s Boys Choir is one of 20 schools in England and Wales to have been selected to be part of the ceremonies that will officially welcome the teams to Rugby World Cup 2015. The ceremonies will also include the formal presentation of official Tournament caps and Rugby World Cup 2015 participation medals.
Emma Bright, Music Co-ordinator for Westdene Primary School, said: “We are thrilled Westdene Boys Choir has been chosen to perform at the welcome ceremony for Japan for Rugby World Cup 2015. This is probably the most prestigious performance we have ever given and the boys are already working incredibly hard to be sure they give their best performance possible!”
The Boys Choir is one of three choirs at the school. It has been running for just under six years and currently consists of 22 boys aged eight to ten years old.
The school was chosen following an application process, led by leading independent charity Youth Sport Trust, which was open to all schools in England and Wales. With over 100 applications, the standard was very high resulting in a competitive judging process which was carried out by Tournament Organisers, England Rugby 2015, the Youth Sport Trust and the RFU.
The successful schools include a mixture of state and private schools with both primary and secondary age groups involved. With schools selected from all around England and Wales, the Tournament reach continues to broaden with people across the UK joining to celebrate Rugby in its biggest year.
Managing Director of England Rugby 2015, Stephen Brown, said: “Congratulations to Westdene Primary School on being selected to be involved in the Welcome Ceremonies for Rugby World Cup 2015. We were really pleased with the response that we got from schools wanting to be involved. The standard of the applications was very high and I would like to thank all schools that took the time to apply. We now have 20 excellent choirs from across England and Wales that will help us to welcome the participating unions to the Tournament and make it a celebration of Rugby. We hope this will provide them with unforgettable memories and give them and the teams a fantastic Tournament experience.”
The chosen choirs vary in size from 18 to 50 pupils and perform in a range of musical styles, including choral and gospel. Each choir has been asked to sing the official Rugby World Cup anthem, World in Union, during the ceremonies that will officially welcome the 20 teams to the Tournament and will be a celebration of Rugby.
The full list of successful schools is as follows: