Having won the women’s event in 2014, Brazil were hoping to repeat their success against Argentina, Colombia and Uruguay in a tournament where games were played with two halves of five minutes, with no kicking and rolling substitutions.

The hosts proved once again to be dominant having emerged unbeaten against their South American rivals, as they build towards competing in front of their home crowd when sevens makes its Olympic debut next year.

Brazil overcame Argentina 8-5 in the gold medal contest, while Colombia defeated Uruguay 4-3 to secure bronze.

Despite failing short, a youthful Colombian team believe the competition was crucial to their preparation for next year’s Games, having earned the South American berth after winning the Sudamérica Rugby Women's Sevens Championships.

“We are working very hard ahead of what will be an incredible period for the game and our country,” said Laurent Palau, Colombia’s French-born coach.

"The Olympic Games are going to be huge and it is great to have these kind of events as they help to promote the game to the people.”

Argentina, who claimed the men’s title last year and reached the final of the Cape Town HSBC World Rugby Sevens Series where they were beaten by hosts South Africa, saw their unbeaten record at the event draw to close.

They fell to a 5-4 defeat against Portugal in the round robin stage of the competition but recovered to reach the final against their European opponents, where they were able to secure a 9-5 victory to defend their title.

Italy were able to overcome Brazil 6-1 in the bronze medal tie.

The tournaments were televised live on Sport TV 2 in Brazil, with action staged at a 1,000-seater arena on one of Rio de Janeiro's most famous beaches.

"We are growing the pool of players constantly and as huge as the Olympic Games will be for us in the country, we are planning beyond it," said Agustín Danza, Brazilian Rugby Union chief executive.

“We had four hours of live television in what was an incredibly enjoyable tournament.

“These kind of events ensure the playing numbers continue to grow.”

In addition to the tournament, the day opened with World Rugby's Get Into Rugby project, which introduced around 450 children to the game which does not have a traditional stronghold in Brazil.