Wales Deaf Sevens teams told to stay in 'unsanitary' army barracks at World Championships in Cordoba

The team ending up having to fork out to stay in a hostel out of their own pockets Credit: Wales Deaf Rugby

Wales' deaf rugby teams were forced to stay in "unsanitary" army barracks while competing in the world championships in Argentina at the weekend.

Wales Deaf became Sevens World Champions in the Men's and Women's categories, but had to overcome off-field chaos before dominating on the field.

The hotel for the tournament was covered by the players' entry fee of £150 but the situation became unclear shortly after Wales entered the competition last year.

Original bookings "fell through" a matter of weeks ago, though teams were assured by organisers that alternative accommodation had been resourced and was adequate.

The players were offered pillows with chunks missing out of them Credit: Wales Deaf Rugby

But when Wales arrived ahead of the tournament on Wednesday, they found what was described by the team's honorary secretary Gareth Evans as "unsanitary" living arrangements.

Players were directed to an army barracks that appeared to be active when they arrived in Argentina.

There was no bedding readily available so players were told they had to go and get their own. Foam pillows had chunks missing and toilets only worked when the cisterns were manually filled with a bucket of water before use.

"We knew it wasn't going to be the Ritz," Evans told ITV Wales. "But basically there were different blocks of different standards and ours just wasn't as nice as what some of the other teams had, and others also left.

"One team stayed because they couldn't afford to go anywhere else."

There was no bedding available for the players - who were told to find their own Credit: Twitter/WalesDeafRugby

After the debacle with accommodation, Wales initially withheld the players' fees - roughly £3,500 - but were then threatened with being kicked out of the tournament on the first day, so they were left with no choice but to pay up.

As a result, players had to pay for five nights at a hostel out of their own pocket.

"It's terrible," said Evans. "We wanted to go out there and be the best prepared team and staying in the right accommodation is part of that preparation.

"We were given descriptions and assurances over the accommodation. We went there in good faith, we'd committed so much and it was difficult to back out.

The club secretary said it was "difficult to back out" of the accommodation Credit: Wales Deaf Rugby

"There is a World Deaf Rugby Organisation and the Chair was at the competition and he was saying: 'The accommodation where I'm staying is nice and the meals are lovely' but he wasn't staying in the same barracks as us.

"We've had an apology but nobody has really taken responsibility for it."

On the field, though, things could not have gone any better with both the men's and the women's team winning their tournaments and becoming world champions.

"It was not reflective of the overall experience but I think the organisers of the competition bit off more than they could chew and they didn't have the support of relevant bodies that they should have had."

"The club that hosted the tournament were very welcoming and the results meant that at least the trip ended on a good note.

"These are disability athletes and they've had enough adversity in their lives. Maybe the unjustness of it just put a bit more fire in the belly."

The team are in discussions with the WRU, who are providing assistance on the matter.

A GoFundMe page has been set up to help cover the costs of the hostel.