Abbie Brown, Danielle Waterman and Amy Wilson-Hardy have been selected for Great Britain Women sevens squad.
Bristol fly-half Megan Jones is named on the standby list.
It will be the first time in 108 years that Team GB has had representation in rugby at Olympic level.
Brown came into prominence in 2015 as she made her England debut against Wales in the Six Nations before playing for England sevens in the Rugby Europe Grand Prix Series and being centrally contracted.
‘Nolli’, as Waterman is affectionately known, became the youngest female (18) to represent her country when she made her Test debut in 2003 and has gone on to score 36 tries in 60 appearances for England, including a try in the World Cup final triumph over Canada in 2014.
Centre Wilson-Hardy is a full time sevens player and scored 12 tries in the 2015/16 World Series taking her career average to 30 tries in 16 events.
The women’s squad, who have been training full time as a wider GB group since October last year, have played in invitational and training tournaments around the globe this season alongside England’s exploits on the circuit, in which they won the Langford event.
Team GB Head Coach (Women) Simon Middleton said: “This is a hugely exciting moment for women’s rugby with sevens making its debut at the Olympic Games and we believe we have selected the best possible group of players to achieve success in Rio.
“The World Series this season proved how competitive the women’s rugby sevens circuit is and we’re very much looking forward to competing against the very best as a Team GB squad.
“The strength and depth of the wider training squad has not made the final selection easy. The players have been together since October and have trained so hard and really pushed the standards up of this group. I would like to thank the players who didn’t make the final squad for their fantastic contribution and putting us in the best possible place to play in Rio.”
