Pichot moves up World Rugby pecking order

London - Argentine rugby legend Agustin Pichot took another step up the global rugby pecking order Wednesday when he was elected to the World Rugby's ruling executive committee.

The 41-year-old former Pumas captain is widely seen as the architect of Argentina's rise up the rugby rankings in recent years. They will dispute the third place playoff at the World Cup on Friday after going down in a battling performance against Australia in the semi-finals.

Pichot, Argentina's skipper when they finished third at the 2007 World Cup, said he was joining the 10-member executive at an "exciting and critical time for our sport" with an Olympic Games next year and a first Rugby World Cup in Asia in 2019.

Argentina Rugby Union president Carlos Araujo said the appointment "is not luck" and was a "huge recognition" of Argentina's place in the sport.

"This is the result of his tireless work towards the growth of Argentinian rugby and clearly rugby in the world," said Araujo.