Team PNG

NGCB Supports team PNG

NGCB Acting Chief Executive Officer Imelda Agon, said the funding assistance is to meet additional costs of quarantine, COVID 19 precautions and the increased costs of travel due to the Pandemic for Team PNG.

Rellie Kaputin who competed over the weekend is the last athlete from team PNG to represent the country at the Olympic Games. 

Agon said NGCB is a keen supporter of the PNG Olympic Committee and will continue to maintain this partnership. 

     

Kaputin last PNG Athlete to compete

Kaputin was the last to compete for Team PNG on day three of the Athletics competition in Tokyo as she shone through a field of world class athletes.

Kaputin Flies Off To Tokyo

PNG’s sole representative in Athletics at the Tokyo Olympics, Rellie Kaputin flies off to Tokyo from Brisbane this afternoon.

The athletics competition gets under way on Friday and Kaputin will compete on Sunday in the qualifying round of the womens long jump.

Eleven of her USA-based team mates who are gathered together in Kansas for a few days during their summer break sent her their best wishes this morning.

Laser Sailing Events Begin in Enoshima

The first day of racing at the Tokyo 2020 venue started yesterday and will run right through to Friday. 

Enoshima is a small island connected to the city of Fujisawa by a bridge. This was also the sailing venue for the Tokyo Olympics in the 1960’s. 

The sailors compete in two races each day for five days with each race taking up to 50 minutes to be completed.

Team PNG At The Opening Ceremony

Flag bearers Dika Toua and Morea Baru led the team into a stadium empty of spectators but full of athletes and the ceremony dancers.

The order of the walk out was unusual with countries marching in, according to the Japanese alphabet, which saw Papua New Guinea sandwiched between Bahamas and Bermuda.

Chef de Mission, Tamzin Wardley said the atmosphere was certainly unusual with no cheers as each country was announced but the show went on.

Toua Makes Olympic History

Toua is not new to making history at the Olympics as back at the Sydney 2000 Olympic Games she became the very first female to participate in Olympic weightlifting for females.

Toua competed in the 49kg event, at the Tokyo International Forum this morning in the first day of competition at the Games.

Toua, at 37, was the oldest athlete in the field and had to change weight category due to the new Olympic weight categories, at these Games, having formerly lifted in the 53kg category.

TEAM PNG - Competition Times & Draws Finalised

Team PNG High Performance Coordinator, Chris Amini, said that four of the five sports that Team PNG is competing in, held their final technical meetings during the day to finalize competition times, entries and draws for the respective sports and events.

In weightlifting, Morea and Dika wasted no time in getting straight into training. Chris Amini said they trained well and the team looks forward to seeing them in their element.

Sibling Sailors Arrive in Tokyo

The Numa pair will be making their Olympic debut and will be participating in the Laser Sailing class events at the Games. They will become the first PNG sailors to compete in the Laser events. 

Their competition commences on 25th of July and they will compete in two heats a day through to the 30th of July.  

Teariki Numa will be competing in the Men’s Laser event in a field of 35 boats and his sister Rose-Lee will be sailing the Laser Radial class, in a field of 44.

8 Represent PNG

Athletes representing PNG are Ryan Maskelyn and Judith Meauri in swimming, both in their respective events, Dika Toua and Morea Baru, also in their respective weight category and divisions, John Ume in boxing in his weight category of 57 – 63kg, Rellie Kaputin in athletics and Sailing duo Rose Lee Numa and Teariki Lee Numa.

First PNG athlete at Olympic village

He touched down in Tokyo, Japan, on Sunday (18th July), led by Chef de Mission Tamzin Wardley and her management team along with his coach, Mark Keto.

Ume will become the 14th Boxer to represent Team PNG and will become Olympian number 65 when he competes on 25 July in the lightweight division (57-63kg) at the Kokugikan Arena.

Team PNG will be participating at their eleventh Olympic Games after their first appearance back at the 1976 Montreal Olympic Games, and will be represented by eight athletes from five sports.