Hayne, a former Parramatta Eel and San Francisco 49er, took the first steps in what he hopes is a journey to an Olympic gold medal when he played for Fiji at the London sevens on Sunday morning Australian time.

He has just one sevens tournament and a training block to force his way into a team that is already rated as one of the best sevens teams on the international circuit.

Some have questioned his decision to step away from the NFL after just one season, while others think he will slot into the Fiji squad to boost their medal chances.

But ACT Brumbies flyer Speight and former Canberra Royals star Williams say Hayne has already done a job in giving sevens a popularity explosion just three months before the Olympics.

Fijian-born winger Speight is racing the clock to recover from a fracture in his skull to make the cut for the Australian sevens side.

"All the hype is about Hayne, but indirectly the sport of sevens is getting all of this exposure," Speight said.

"No one really saw it coming but he's a proven athlete, he excels at whatever he puts his mind to. I haven't read too much into it but I'm sure he'll train as hard as anyone else in the Fijian team.

"The good thing is that they've given him a chance this week ... the Fijian team is on fire and so he's got a great team and bunch of players who are hitting their straps at the right him. He's in good hands if he wants to learn the game as quickly as possible.

"It's all very exciting. The talk about the Olympics is starting to pick up ... it's starting to hit home that the possibility of being a part of it could become a reality."

Williams flew to France on Saturday with the Australian women's team after spending the past four months recovering from a knee injury.

"Having guys like Quade Cooper, Nick 'The Honey Badger' Cummins and Jarryd Hayne talk about sevens is massive because you're already drawing guys from other codes, so imagine what it's going to do for sevens for the rest of Australia," Williams said.

"Being included in the Olympics, the sport has escalated and it's going to get even bigger in the next few years. The pathway to sevens is going to grow and evolve itself, it's exciting to be a part of."

Speight has been cleared to return to full training in the next two weeks after having a titanium mesh screwed into the bone above his eye to heal a fracture.

But doctors have told him he must wear headgear for the next six months to protect the injury and prevent further problems.

Williams is ready for her comeback after injuring her knee at the end of last year. She spent 12 weeks in a knee brace before being allowed to start training again.

Williams has been the women's team's fearless leader during the past two years and has helped put Australia in gold-medal contention. She will play in a world series tournament in France next weekend before playing in international friendly fixtures to build up her match fitness.

Speight will be given a chance to prove his fitness in June and July, with Australian coach Andy Friend organising games to test the depth of his squad.