NAIROBI, Feb. 16 (Xinhua) -- Argentina and Germany won golds at the HSBC SVNS 2 tournament in Nairobi on Sunday to take an early lead in the three-leg race for places on the HSBC SVNS World Championship series.
The two teams head into next month's back-to-back rounds in Montevideo and Sao Paulo level on 20 points after their title wins in the Kenyan capital.
The top four men's and women's teams after the three SVNS 2 tournaments will qualify for the elite World Championship series, scheduled for May and June.
Argentina leads the women's standings after the opening round, followed by South Africa, Spain and China. In the men's competition, Germany tops the table, with the United States, Kenya and Uruguay close behind.
"We have been training for three years with our new staff, and everyone has put in a lot of work, physically and mentally. We have been doing a lot of hard work, so we are really happy with the outcome. It is not a coincidence, it's because of everything that we have been doing," player of the tournament Sofia Gonzalez told World Rugby.
South Africa, which finished second after earning promotion from the HSBC SVNS 3 tournament in Dubai, was the only side to beat Argentina in Nairobi and trails the leaders by just two points heading into the South American leg.
In the men's competition, Germany underlined its credentials with a perfect second day to secure the Nairobi title, while day-one leaders Kenya and the United States were unable to carry their momentum through the decisive matches.
Germany began day two with a surprise win over the United States before beating Belgium to move into pole position, with only Kenya able to overtake them in the final match.
However, Kenya was held by a tactically disciplined U.S. side, which kept the hosts in check for most of the contest in a much-anticipated clash between the two unbeaten teams from day one.
Earlier, Germany had beaten the United States 28-7 in their first match on day two, scoring four unanswered tries, including two from Felix Hufnagel. ■
