'Borderline crazy' conditioning preps Delaware native for role on U.S. Olympic rugby team

The threshold for what Malacchi Esdale considers an injury is high.

So, the 29-year-old labels his past two rugby seasons as injury-free. He didn't miss a match despite the regular accumulation of bumps, bruises and dislocated fingers.

"In rugby, you kind of just tape it up and get to it," Esdale said.

The Delaware native will make his Olympic debut Wednesday as part of the U.S. rugby team as pool play opens at the 2024 Paris Games. It's the crowning achievement in Esdale's six-year professional career that got its start after his ambitions of playing high-level football ended.

He's made his name in rugby sevens, a faster-paced 7-on-7 version of the sport that was introduced in the Olympics in 2016 (traditional rugby features 15 players on each team). Requiring a blend of speed and agility and strength and power, the sport is so physically taxing most Olympics games last only 14 minutes.

"The conditioning that you have to do to prepare yourself for this game is like, it's borderline crazy," Esdale said.

Esdale has played for the U.S. national team since 2021. The team competes on an annual international circuit known as HSBC SVNS.

A typical training day starts with breakfast and a rehab session, then the team heads to the gym. They watch recent game film and then have a skills session focused on fundamentals like basic passing and tackling. Next, is the "first session of the day," which revolves around drills for the team's style of play. After lunch, the team has its main session, which is mostly a scrimmage.

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"I think the diversity of the game is awesome," the 6-foot-2, 190-pound Esdale said. "I think that it is challenging in all those areas but it's also equally as fun as well. So the things that make it the hardest conditioning — the strength, the speed, all of that, you know the aspects of different sports — that's also what makes it fun.

The U.S. team has been in Paris since the start of last week, spending the first part of its time at a U.S.-specific facility before moving into the Olympic Village. They were one of the first teams in the village, which afforded the team the chance to see everyone else move in.

"It's countries from all over the place," Esdale said. "All these places I've never even heard of."

Esdale was unsure Monday whether the team would participate in the opening ceremonies Friday. They will have played Wednesday and Thursday, and the bronze- and gold-medal matches are scheduled for Saturday. A Sixers fan, Esdale is hoping he'll come across Joel Embiid, a starter on the U.S. men's basketball team, at some point in the village.

Esdale will have 14 supporters in Paris when the U.S. has its first match Wednesday afternoon against France (10:30 a.m. in Delaware), including wife Paula, mother Danielle and brothers Isaiah and Noah. He considers them his motivation to have made it to this point.

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Esdale was born in Wilmington and grew up in the Newark area, attending Forest Oak Elementary and H.B. du Pont Middle School. He moved to Naples, Florida, for high school to pursue a career in sports.

It was there a few high school friends asked him one day to come play with their club.

"They needed somebody that was fast," Esdale said.

He liked the sport, but only played in a handful of games as he was being recruited to play college football at the time.

Esdale returned to Delaware for his senior year and graduated from Appoquinimink in 2013. He played football at ASA College in New York and then transferred to Miami. After a coaching change and an injury, Esdale transferred again to Central Florida, but did not play football. Pretty soon, his competitive appetite needed satiation and he joined the school's club rugby team.

He later played for the Houston Sabercats of Major League Rugby (15-a-side), which formed in 2017. Esdale played in a few camps in Chula Vista, California, which is where the U.S. sevens team trains and eventually earned a spot on the team. He was an alternate at the Tokyo Olympics, but did not play.

Esdale lives in Orlando, Florida.

The U.S. is in search of the country's first rugby sevens medal after finishing ninth in Rio and sixth in Tokyo. Fiji won gold in both games.

"My main thing is, you know, trying to soak it all in and just enjoy it," Esdale said.

HOW TO WATCH: Delaware natives compete in 2024 Paris Olympics

U.S. men's rugby schedule

All times in eastern standard time . All games available live on Peacock.

Wednesday, July 24

U.S. vs. France in Pool C 10:30 a.m.

U.S. vs. Fiji in Pool C 2:30 p.m. USA Network coverage begins at 1 p.m.

Thursday, July 25

U.S. vs. Uruguay in Pool C 9 a.m. USA Network coverage begins at 8 a.m.

Placing games for 9th-12th overall teams 2 p.m. and 2:30 p.m. Quarterfinals begin at 3 p.m.

Saturday, July 27

Tournament continues concluding with bronze medal match at 1 p.m. (CNBC) and gold medal match at 1:45 p.m. (NBC)

Brandon Holveck reports on high school sports for The News Journal. Contact him at bholveck@delawareonline.com .

This article originally appeared on Delaware News Journal: 'Borderline crazy' conditioning preps Delaware native for role on U.S. Olympic rugby team