Rugby World Cup staying down under
The 2003 World Cup will not be moved to the United Kingdom after the International Rugby Board confirmed Australia are still set to co-host the tournament along with New Zealand.
The announcement follows a war of words Down Under in the wake of the Australian government's decision to refuse entry visas to the Fiji team for the Brisbane World Sevens Series next month.
The IRB stripped the tournament of its official status following the government's controversial move, sparking fears that they might also take action over the World Cup.
But IRB spokeswoman Michelle Treacy said the decision over the Brisbane tournament was unrelated to the World Cup.
"That's not something we have ever said," she commented. "We have no contingency plans for 2003."
The Board's statement contradicted an earlier assertion from New Zealand Rugby Union chairman Murray McCaw.
He said the IRB were "seeking urgent clarification from the Australian government, and the Australian Rugby Union (ARU), as to the impact of their stance on the 2003 Rugby World Cup".
McCaw's words angered ARU chief executive John O'Neill, who described them as "provocative, inflammatory and quite unnecessary".
The IRB acknowledged the decision to exclude Fiji from the Brisbane Sevens on February 16-17 had been made by the Australian government rather than the ARU.
They also praised "the efforts made by the ARU to persuade the Australian government to lift the ban".
Australia imposed the ban as part of sanctions against Fiji following last year's coup.
