Veteran speedster Portia Woodman has returned to the Black Ferns Sevens in pursuit of a tryscoring record on the world circuit.
Crowned Olympic champions at Tokyo last year, the NZ women have not contested the international series during the COVID-19 pandemic, but Woodman's absence extends back to October 2018, before she ruptured an Achilles tendon.
Both those hiatus will end next week, when they appear at the Langford Sevens in Canada, as part of their build-up towards at the Birmingham Commonwealth Games, where they are also reigning gold medallists.
Since debuting with the Black Ferns Sevens in 2013, Woodman, 30, has scored 195 tries on the circuit - already a record - and can become the first women to reach 200 at Langford. Only eight men have achieved the milestone, including Kiwi Tim Mikkelson.
"We saw in [Super Rugby] Aupiki how dominant and impactful she can be," said coach Cory Sweeney. "She is a special player and person.
"Portia leads a lot of our connection off field, so we’re excited for her to get back on the World Series and keep progressing what she can do on the sevens field."
Eleven of the 13 players that won gold at Tokyo have returned for this campaign, with Gayle Broughton since retiring and Ruby Tui choosing to concentrate on the Black Ferns 15s programme. Jazmin Hotham and Terina Te Tamaki have replaced them.
New Zealand have drawn a pool featuring Malaga winners United States, England and Fiji, opening their account against the English on Sunday, May 1.
The Black Ferns Sevens squad for Langford is Michaela Blyde, Kelly Brazier, Theresa Fitzpatrick, Stacey Fluhler, Sarah Hirini (C), Jazmin Hotham, Shiray Kaka, Tyla Nathan-Wong, Risaleaana Pouri-Lane, Alena Saili
Terina Te Tamaki, Tenika Willison, Portia Woodman
