Pro league in pipeline

China could soon have its own professional rugby union league as the nation looks to make an impression in the sport at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.

The Chinese Rugby Football Association (CRFA) recently unveiled a plan to establish a national league of 15-a-side teams by 2018 and to expand the current seven-a-side competition, which has been an Olympic sport since the last Games in Rio.

"Our goal is to qualify for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, both men's and women's teams, and try to achieve decent results," Cui Weihong, secretary general of CRFA, said at a recent World Rugby conference in Beijing.