The 23-year-old replaces senior player Ben Roach, who was set to lead the team this weekend in Vancouver. Roach suffered a shoulder injury in Los Angeles last weekend, meaning Luke Treharne retains the captain’s armband.
In other big news for the team, fly-half Ethan Davies is back after a long injury lay-off (read today’s interview with him here). It will be Davies’s first involvement in the World Series this season.
Cardiff Blues’ Callun James is named as 13th man.
Wales’ pool sees them take on Fiji (Sat, 19:37 GMT), France (Sat, 14:27), and hosts Canada (Sun, 02:05).
The tournament will be shown live on Sky Sports, with regular updates on the World Rugby Sevens Series blog.
Wales Sevens squad – Vancouver:
Dragons: James Benjamin Cardiff Blues: Callun James Ospreys: Caine Woolerton, Callum Carson, Will Jones, Tom Williams Pontypool RFC: Lloyd Lewis Core Players: Luke Treharne (c), Jay Jones, Dafydd Smith, Will Thomas, Alex Grey, Ethan Davies.
