Francois Hougaard was a surprise omission from the Springbok team that took part in the World Cup; now the Bok utility back will take a sabbatical for at least a year from the Test team. The side's loss is the Blitzboks' gain. Hougaard and former Sharks and Springbok loose forward Ryan Kankowski have signed contracts with the national Sevens team for the coming season, up until the end of the Olympic Games in Brazil next year.The two players dotting down for the Sevens team means they will be unavailable for the Springboks until after the Olympics.The SA Rugby Union announced a 33-man Blitzbok training squad for the 2015-2016 season. They will also fight for spots in the final Olympics team. The squad includes Damian de Allende, Lwazi Mvovo and Bryan Habana, who have just returned from the World Cup in England.Other Currie Cup players who will switch from the 15-man game to Sevens include the Lions' Jaco Kriel, Bulls' Warrick Gelant, Western Province's Cheslin Kolbe and Juan de Jongh and the Cheetahs' Oupa Mohoje and Ryno Benjamin.Hougaard and Kankowski are the only players to have signed contracts. The rest, including Lions captain Warren Whiteley, will still be available for the Bok Test side.Saru spokesman Andy Colquhoun confirmed yesterday that the players would "go back and forth between Sevens and 15s".With next year's Olympics following World Rugby's HSBC Sevens Series, Saru believes the coming season will be the most important in Sevens rugby's history.Saru CEO Jurie Roux said: "The new, expanded World Series and the Olympic Games are two huge challenges and we at Saru want to make sure we give our Springbok Sevens team the best possible chance of success."The signing of players such as Francois Hougaard and Ryan Kankowski is a real coup for us. It means they will focus solely on the seven-a-side game in the coming season, bringing with them unique skill sets . identified as being ideal for the code."The Blitzboks' three-week training camp will start on Sunday in Stellenbosch.The full training squad is:Cecil Afrika, Tim Agaba, Ryno Benjamin, Kyle Brown, Branco du Preez, Carel du Preez, Damian de Allende, Stephan Dippenaar, Chris Dry, Juan de Jongh, Justin Geduld, Warrick Gelant, Lungelo Gosa, Bryan Habana, Cornal Hendricks, Francois Hougaard, Frankie Horne, Dewald Human, Ryan Kankowski, Werner Kok, Cheslin Kolbe, Jaco Kriel, Oupa Mohoje, Lwazi Mvovo, Sibahle Maxwane, Ruhan Nel, Sandile Ngcobo, Seabelo Senatla, Philip Snyman, Kwagga Smith, Rosco Specman, Warren Whiteley...