All Black legend Jonah Lomu was brought in to inspire New Zealand’s World Cup Sevens-winning squad, with coach Gordon Tietjens admitting that planning for Olympic gold in Rio had already begun in earnest.

New Zealand thrashed England 33-0 in the final of the men’s competition in Moscow’s Luzhniki Stadium on Sunday, with their female counterparts also winning the women’s draw with a 29-12 victory over Canada.

While the men’s team have won 11 of the 14 season titles on the IRB World Series Sevens circuit, their last victory at the World Cup was way back in 2001.

“It’s a great thrill,” said Tietjens. “2001 was the last one, and to come off a World Series win and cap it off with the World Cup is a great season.”

Lomu, the giant winger who caused havoc among world rugby’s defences when he played for the All Blacks was called in as inspiration, having played in that 2001 campaign.

“Jonah Lomu was quite influential (in 2001), and he was brought in to get the buzz going.”

Tietjens said the attitude in his squad had improved daily over the three-day tournament.

“Every game from Wales (in the quarter-finals) to Fiji (in the semis) to England, we played superbly,” the veteran coach said, adding that his team had also dealt well with thunderstorms that suspended their semi-final for an hour.

“To play well in those conditions (in the final) and stick to the game plan – and comprehensively they played straight into our hands and we knew they would – was great.”

Tietjens said the World Cup win was a “great marker” ahead of the Rio Olympics in 2016, and also the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow next year, adding that the World Cup was proof that the game was becoming that much more competitive.