The Paris 2024 Paralympics kick off 29th August 6:00am NZST (28th Aug 1pm CT, USA) and for the first time ever there will be 13 Pacific athletes competing.

The record breaking Pacific registration was celebrated by the Oceania Paralympic Committee who remarked that ‘this moment represented years of preparation, sacrifice and determination.”

The Pacific cohort boasts representation from 6 pacific nations - Fiji, Tonga, Papua New Guinea, Vanuatu, the Solomon Islands and Kiribati.

The 13 strong Pacific athlete squad consists of 7 women and 6 men competing across the para-taekwando and the para-athletics.…more

“A strong culture means a strong team”

The very first Pasifika Rugby League team in Aotearoa was the legendary ‘Samoana’ team from Dunedin in the early 1960s, now a new exhibition at the Hocken Library in Dunedin shines a light on the ragtag team and their extraordinary success on the field. 

‘Samoana’ made up of scholarship students and Samoan locals, was formed in the wake of local NZ rugby teams not seeing the value of Pasifika players, and the low Pasifika playing representation across rugby and league codes. 

Proving them spectacularly wrong, the newly formed team smashed a series of South Island league championships to remain undefeated in a 3 year run. In their first season, 1964, Samoana triumphed over the local competition, with 18 wins of19 games played, their success saw them dominate the sport for the next 3 years, winning local and South Island titles.…more

Down, But Not Out. 

In the opening weekend of the 2024 Summer Olympics, three very different boxers took to the ring, each with extraordinary pressures on them. Though none would be victorious in their match, it was in many ways what happened off the ring that made them simply competing vitally important to both their nations and the wider Pacific community. 

Fe’ofa’aki Epenisa is the first female boxer to compete for Tonga at the Olympics, which you may have already heard about. What you might not know is that boxing was banned in Tonga less than a decade ago. 

In 2018 a letter was sent from then Education Minister Penisimani Fifira to Tonga High School issuing a ban on rugby and boxing. The ban made international headlines, with rugby the focus, partly because Jonah Lomu remains the most famous pacific rugby player of all time. The boxing ban was a bit of an add on to most stories, but it was a big deal for female boxers because the ban was not about safety.…more

The All Blacks Head Coach Scott Robertson has recently named the All Blacks squad for the 2024 Lipovitan-D Rugby Championship. A whopping 42% are Pacific Island Players!

Robertson stated “It was a tough squad to select because everyone has owned their opportunities.…more

As the world gears up for the spectacle of the 2024 Paris Olympics, amidst the grandeur and glory, 105 athletes from the Pacific Islands are ready to make waves of their own. 

From the small Micronesian country of Palau to the mountain ranges of Papua New Guinea, these competitors bring not just their incredible talent but also the spirit Pasifika culture to the global stage. Get to know the athletes representing the Moana here; and stay updated on what days they take to the global stage of the Games of the XXXIII Olympiad!

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American Samoa 

‘Le Motu o Fiafiaga’ sends two athletes to the 2024 Summer Olympics, in swimmer Micah Masei Men’s 100m breaststroke and track star/flagbearer Filomenaleonisa Iakopo in the Women’s 100m

Team American Samoa: Micah Masei, Filomenaleonisa Iakopo

Cook Islands

Avaiki Nui will also be sending two athletes to Paris, with Lanihei Connolly looking to make a splash in the Women’s 100m breastroke, and Alex Beddoes taking to the track in the Men’s 800m.…more

OPINION

Although Pacific people are the highest percentage of All Blacks and Black Ferns, there’s still no Pasifika seat at the New Zealand Rugby board.

Pasifika communities and allies are fighting for fair representation in governance. As a sport academic, and son of a Pacific community rugby pioneer, I stand in solidarity.

As a child, in 1997, I remember seeing my dad in meetings with Auckland Rugby.

My dad Fa’alafitele Faupapa Enari organised Pacific rugby tournaments and coached Auckland Samoa and Ulalei rugby teams. I remember hearing the condescending patronising remarks from union representatives to my dad and other Pasifika elders. Sadly, today, much hasn’t changed. It’s just masked better.

Looking at how far New Zealand Rugby has come; you cannot deny that Māori and Pasifika people made New Zealand rugby as we know it and platformed it to the world.

One must only look at legends such as La’auli Sir Michael Jones, the late Jonah Lomu to current players such as Ardie Savea, plus the many more Pacific brothers who wore the black jersey.…more

Fiji is uniquely the only rugby nation in the world to win Olympic gold in modern times and coach Osea Kolinisau insists his team is looking to continue that unique legacy in Paris in two week’s time.

The Paris Olympic 7s kicks off on 24 of July and the whole of Fiji is hoping for the ‘threepeat’, the miraculous achievement of winning all three Olympic rugby gold medals since the sport was introduced in 2016.

The idea that this Fijian team is not as motivated as the original gold medal-winning teams of 2016 and 2021 was rubbished by the legendary, former captain who is now looking to become a great coach.

‘I will correct you of that thought. We are really hungry for that win,’ said Kolinisau this week from Libourne near the south-west coast of France.…more

"My background was completely different from your average collegiate swimmer, which for a while made me a bit insecure, but now it is something I am proud of. I grew up in a country where we did not have proper facilities or a swimming pool, so we trained in the ocean. I am slowly overcoming it and understanding that the pathway to the Olympics looks different for so many athletes. Mine might not be the most conventional, but I wouldn’t have it any other way."

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As the first Olympic swimmer born and raised in Tonga, Day’s achievements are historic. Her goals extend beyond swimming, as she pursues degrees in Human Biology and Documentary Film, while also working at USC. Balancing her academics, future career plans, and Olympic training has required strategic preparation and time management.

Day’s swimming journey started in Tonga, a collection of islands without an Olympic-size pool. Her early training was in the ocean and at makeshift facilities like hotel pools and navy bases.…more

Polynesians and fight fans around the world are celebrating the victory of Samoan-Australian Cruiserweight boxer Jai Opetaia after he defeated Mairis Briedis of Latvia for the vacant IBF World Cruiserweight Title!

He is also the Ring Magazine champion. 

When the two fought previously on the Gold Coast in 2022, Jai was a promising youngster and Briedis admittedly underestimated his skills and abilities. In an epic battle that went twelve rounds, Briedis fought with a broken nose and Jai had his jaw broken in two places.

Jai won the fight but had to go straight to hospital because as he said later, “My jaw wasn’t even attached to my skull.”

For ‘Opetaia v Briedis II’ Jai found it hard to find his rhythm and won the first eight rounds on most people’s score cards but failed to knock down the Latvian. Neither fighter ever really looked in danger of knocking the other out or down.…more