Before the farewell tears, Dominique Du Toit has promised personal bests in Paris.
Du Toit's Australian women's rugby sevens captain Charlotte Caslick told the team of her retirement plans after they had beaten New Zealand to reach the world series final in June.
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The media and communications graduate, who got into the sport after seeing Toowoomba schoolmate Emilee Cherry thrive, says she's undecided on what's next but hasn't ruled out a code switch.
"They've made me feel so loved. It's been nothing but amazing," the 27-year-old told AAP from pre-Olympic camp in Montpellier.
"I'm an emotional person anyway so it will be sad, but also just thinking how grateful I am to be able to do this for so long and the Olympics adds a new layer of emotions as the pinnacle event."
Keen to point out they beat Paris pool rivals South Africa in a training camp clash this week, Du Toit's retirement announcement hasn't diminished competitive drive.
"We're definitely keeping score and we did win," she said.
"It's my last one and it's making me push a bit harder; I want to go hard so I'm trying to get PBs in everything.
"I'm excited for what the Olympics will bring then I just want to kick my feet up for a while. It's time."
Du Toit, while still in year 12, won a Youth Olympics medal in 2015 before moving to Sydney to join the sevens program and be part of the sport's professional surge.
The Queenslander was part of the squad when Australia won gold at the sport's Rio 2016 debut, but as a travelling reserve never took the field because Tim Walsh's side went through unscathed.
A wide-eyed rookie, Du Toit didn't realise it at the time but ahead of another gold medal tilt recognises that golden moment as the power source of her 10-year toil.
"I was just so happy to be there," she said.
"It was cloud nine, but reflecting back I realised if I'd played it would have been the best thing to have ever happened to me.
"To see them win, it ignited the fire and it's honestly what's got me through all the hard days.
"I was that close but didn't get there and that's what I actually want to do."
Du Toit was in the side that copped a shock 14-12 Tokyo quarter-final loss to Fiji that saw them miss the medals.
They will return as confident world champions in a neck-and-neck fight for supremacy with defending Olympic champions New Zealand.
"What those girls did not just for women's rugby, but women's sport, after the Rio Olympics was absolutely massive," she said.
"And Paris is another opportunity like that."
Australia's men's sevens outfit will be among the first teams in action when they begin their campaign on July 24, two days before the opening ceremony.
The women's event will follow from July 29, Walsh's side to play South Africa, Great Britain and Ireland in a testing pool stage.
