Nigel Cluer was one of five champion athletes of yesteryears who was inducted to the PNG Sports Hall of Fame on Saturday night at the Crowne Plaza Hotel in Port Moresby.
The following is a brief history of Cluer’s exploits when he was a star of his days of old.
Date of Birth: May 12, 1953
Place of birth: Zambia, Africa
Hometown: Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea
An extremely accomplished swimmer, Nigel Cluer’s career began in pre-independence Papua New Guinea when at age 14, he was the youngest member of the Territory of Papua and New Guinea team to the second South Pacific Games in Noumea, New Caledonia, held in 1996.
It was in Noumea where he experienced the first of many South Pacific medal moments as a member of the bronze medal winning 400 meters medley relay team.
Cluer pointed out the pools at the Murray Barracks and the Taurama Barracks as the places where he trained.
“That’s where I started,” said Cluer.
Cluer also competed in the 1969 South Pacific Games in Port Moresby where he won four gold medals and one silver and took the Sportsman of the Year award.
He attended the 1970 Edinburgh Commonwealth Games in Scotland but did not compete when he contracted the mumps.
A special moment for him was when he represented PNG at the first ever FINA World Championships in Yugoslavia.
As the only person in the PNG contingent, he played the role of athlete, manager and coach. Amazingly he finished 5th in the 200m breaststroke and 8th in the 200m individual medley.
At the 4th South Pacific Games in Tahiti in 1971, Cluer pulled in five gold medals, two silver and one bronze.
He also broke two Australian records in 1973 for the 200m breaststroke and the 200m medley.
With his fourteen medals, nine of them being gold medals, Cluer has written himself into folklore for his contribution in the sport of swimming and to the nation of Papua New Guinea.