The PNG Olympic Committee looks back at 2014

 

With the Port Moresby XV Pacific Games on the horizon, 2014 was an extremely busy year for the Papua New Guinea Olympic Committee (PNGOC) as our efforts to support the preparations of the country’s elite athletes for the Games added another layer of importance to the delivery of our activities.

A magnificent milestone for the PNG Olympic Committee came through Team PNG’s performance at the Glasgow Commonwealth Games where we sent a total contingent of 140 (96 athletes and 46 officials), Team PNG’s largest number of athletes to compete at a Commonwealth Games to date. The team finished a wonderful 16th out of 71 nations on the medal table, our most successful result at a Commonwealth Games in over 50 years of attendance.

The fantastic result was achieved through the triumph of PNG’s two weightlifting superstars Steven Kari and Dika Toua, who won gold in their respective divisions. This was the first time Team PNG had won two gold medals at the same Commonwealth Games. Steven and Dika join Geua Tau and Ryan Pini as PNG’s only athletes to win gold at the Commonwealth level.

Their feat was recognised by the public upon return as the team was welcomed back with a rousing reception and a parade through the streets of Port Moresby. The two gold medal champions were also generously rewarded by the Prime Minister and Government of PNG with K100,000 kina each for their triumphant efforts.

2014 also saw Team PNG attend the other major international event on our calendar, the 2nd Youth Olympic Games which was held in Nanjing, China. The Youth Olympics Games with its emphasis on both competition and connection amongst the world’s best young athletes saw Team PNG’s elite young athletes not only have the opportunity to compete with their peers, but also experience different cultures as part of the game’s DNA.

Team PNG’s focus on the 2015 Pacific Games was augmented with the appointment of the Chef de Mission and the General Management Team for the games. Richard Kassman, the CdM for Team PNG to the 2013 Wallis & Futuna Pacific Mini-Games, has been entrusted with the task of leading Team PNG once again for our home games. He will be assisted by the General Manager for the team Leith Isaac who will be managing what will be Team PNG’s largest ever team to an international sporting event.

Progress towards the 2015 Pacific Games over the last year has seen the endorsement of the Team PNG sports officials through the PNGOC Officials Selection Policy. A similar policy for the selection of Team PNG athletes for each of the 28 sports on the 2015 Pacific Games programme was finalised and shared with sports for use in the selection process.

The PNG Olympic Committee has had a long standing ambition to provide PNG’s elite athletes with a facility to support their elite performance needs. In July 2014, this goal was achieved when the High Performance Training Centre (HTPC) was officially opened by the Minister of Sports and the 2015 Pacific Games, Justin Tkatchenko. The venue is free of charge for Team PNG athletes and provides them with access to strength and conditioning equipment and expertise from local trainers as well as access to sports rehabilitation and science services.

The establishment and running of the HPTC has been a large focus of PNGOC’s High Performance Division, although PNGOC’s efforts in the high performance area in 2014 has also seen the staging of a National Coaches and Managers Conference and two level sports trainer courses to develop the capacity of those involved with elite sport in PNG.

The year also saw PNGOC, through the PNG Athletes Commission, run the Voices of the Athletes programme at the 6th PNG Games hosted in Lae. It was the first time the programme has been staged in Papua New Guinea and saw the athletes attending the games engaging with the programme through an interactive style of awareness on four components: Be a Leader – promoting the role of athletes as role models and leaders in their communities; Play Safe – HIV and AIDS awareness; Play True – focusing on the impact of drugs on athletes and sporting competition; Go Green ‘Love your Coast’ – the impact of plastic rubbish on the marine environment and human health.

The SP Sports Awards held for the 22nd time in 2014, saw PNG’s sporting personalities rewarded for their exploits. The three big awards went to Steven Kari as Male Athlete of the Year, Abigail Tere-Apisah as Female Athlete of the Year and the PNG Barramundis as the Team of the Year.

The PNGOC is grateful to all those who took part in our very successful major fundraising events. The Trukai Fun Run and the Prime Minister’s Corporate Golf Challenge drew large numbers of participants in 2014 and are expected to be bigger in 2015. We are looking forward to the staging of the Trukai Fun Run next year, which will be held on July 5th, 2015 – a day after the opening ceremony of the Pacific Games.

The Trukai Fun Run continued to grow in 2014, with 95,000 shirts supplied to PNGOC by Trukai Industries. The June 22nd event involved 10 centres from around the country as the PNG public, schools and business houses again showed their fondness for what is recognised as the Pacific’s biggest event of its kind. Over 30,000 people participated in the fun run in Port Moresby alone.

The corporate community in PNG showed their great support again for the annual Prime Minister’s Corporate Golf Challenge with 53 Teams participating in Port Moresby and another 34 teams in Lae. NCDC were the winners in Port Moresby while Goroka Coffee Roasters took out the title in Lae.

With the success of Team PNG, our activities and programmes, PNGOC is grateful for the support of our partners, sponsors and stakeholders who continue to make everything we do possible. Our gratitude is extended to the National Government, the Ministry of Sports, PNG Sports Foundation, Pacific Games Authority, International Olympic Committee, Oceania National Olympic Committee, Commonwealth Games Federation, and Pacific Games Council for their partnership and valued support. The PNGOC is deeply indebted to our sponsors, National Gaming Control Board, Trukai Industries, Air Niugini, SP Brewery, Pacific MMI, The National, Coral Sea Hotels, Remington Print & Document Solutions, Theodist, IBS, Courts and Media Partners for providing the means to allow the PNGOC continue its pursuit of excellence.

We look forward to continuing these partnerships and strengthening our working relationships as we go into the New Year and beyond.

PNGOC has also released its calendar of events for 2015. The dates of some of our key events and activities are:

January 7th - SP Sports Awards 2015 Launch

January 9th – 11th Coaches and Managers workshop

March 19th - Trukai Fun Run T-Shirt Auction in Lae

March 21st - Trukai Fun Run T-Shirt Auction in Port Moresby

March 28th - SP Sports Awards Presentation Night

April 17th - Prime Minister’s Corporate Golf Challenge in Port Moresby

May 8th - Prime Minister’s Corporate Golf Challenge in Lae

May 23rd - PNGOC Annual General Meeting

July 4th - XV Pacific Games Opening Ceremony – Port Moresby

July 5th - Trukai Fun Run

September 5th - Commonwealth Youth Games – Apia

October 17th - Sports Hall of Fame Induction

October 28th - Association of National Olympic Committees (ANOC) General Assembly – Washington DC