Warm Welcome for Wales’ 2023 Rugby World Cup Squad upon Arrival in Versailles, France

Wales Receives Warm Welcome in Versailles for 2023 Rugby World Cup

The Welsh squad has been greeted with open arms upon their arrival at the 2023 Rugby World Cup in Versailles. As they left their hotel base, the Vale of Glamorgan, on Sunday morning, the renowned Urdd Choir serenaded them with a beautiful performance before they embarked on their journey to Paris.

An official ceremony awaited Warren Gatland’s players on Sunday evening at their tournament base just outside the French capital. The atmosphere was electric as fly-half Dan Biggar took center stage and delivered a heartfelt speech in fluent French while Corey Domachowski led a touching rendition of the beloved Welsh hymn Calon Lan.

“It was truly amazing, wasn’t it?” exclaimed Biggar. “This is what World Cups are all about – coming to extraordinary places like this and experiencing such warmth and hospitality. We’ve been eagerly anticipating this moment for so long, and now that it’s finally here, everyone is overjoyed.”

Biggar recently joined Toulon in November 2022 and has made an effort to learn French during his time there. Reflecting on his speech delivery, he admitted feeling some nerves but expressed gratitude towards the people of France for putting together such a fantastic show.

“Being out of France for a few months made me feel quite rusty,” said Biggar with a smile. “But being able to communicate even imperfectly shows our willingness to embrace the local culture. I’m sure my French teacher will correct any mistakes I made, but overall, I hope it was well-received.”

The responsibility of leading the choir fell upon Cardiff prop Corey Domachowski. When asked about their preparation for this task, Biggar cheekily remarked: “To be honest, we didn’t put too much work into it. Corey took charge, and we had a couple of sessions before training, but we managed to pull it off without any outside help. Hopefully, our performance on the field will be better than our singing!”

Wales is set to travel to four different venues across France from their base just outside Paris. Their group stage matches include fixtures against Fiji, Portugal, Australia, and Georgia with the top two teams advancing to the quarter-finals.

The tournament itself kicks off on Friday, 8 September with hosts France facing New Zealand in Paris. Wales’ opening game will take place in Bordeaux on Sunday, 10 September against Fiji.

Under Gatland’s leadership, Wales has enjoyed success at the previous three World Cup tournaments. Reaching the semi-finals in both 2011 and 2019 as well as securing a quarter-final spot in 2015 have raised expectations for this year’s campaign.

Jac Morgan and Dewi Lake have been selected as co-captains for Wales’ first World Cups alongside experienced players like George North who will be participating in his fourth tournament. At just 20 years old, lock Dafydd Jenkins is the youngest member of the squad.