Oil Search Pacific Games Relay in Madang Town, Madang Province

Oil Search Pacific Games Relay in Madang
Photo credit: madNESS photography

The Oil Search Pacific Games Relay arrived in Madang Friday morning. The relay was officially met by the Deputy Governor Rama Marasan and members of the Provincial Assembly.

The Baton was escorted into town on a convoy of bikes before starting off the relay around the main township.

The relay’s first runners were from the Disabled Person Resource Centre, the Creative Self Help Centre, led by Eddie Augnai. Then the runners from Tusbab Secondary took over and they then supported the relay runners for the remainder of the four hours.

Madang was out in force to watch the relay with over 15,000 people lined up on the streets, coming out of their houses or places of work or on vehicles that stopped to watch the Relay go by.

The baton was carried by Sir Arnold Amet and his son from the famous Coastwatchers lighthouse, along with a number of former Papua New Guinea athletes including Rose Kambual winner of gold, silver and bronze in the lawn bowls event in Fiji South Pacific Games 1979, and 1991 South Pacific basketball medal winner Penny Sape,

The relay sidetracked out to the famous pottery village of Bilbil where they were met by singsing groups and a display of the pottery being made.

The relay then took to the water and the baton was taken by banana boat along the limestone cliffs back into town stopping for photographs with kids playing in the water as it went.

The Pacific games sponsors were all out in force to welcome the Relay as it went through town.

Saturday the Relay team will head inland up to Gogol Bridge and Kamba Village and then Sunday we travel the north coast road.