PINA

Banuve Tabakaucoro won the men's 100 metres title as the Pacific Mini Games continued in the Northern Mariana Islands. The Fiji runner, known as the “Bau Bullet”, came home to win the flagship race in 10.56sec. In weightlifting, Australia won three overall titles. Oceania's powerhouse nation does not send its strongest team to the regional event but is competing in weightlifting and...

Weightlifter Apolonia Vaivai has marked her return to the sport with Team Fiji’s first gold medal at the Pacific Mini Games in Saipan, Northern Marianas. Vaivai won gold in the women’s 76kg snatch competition. She was pushed by Olivia Kelly of Australia but Vaivai came out stronger to win in the end. Vaivai returned to weightlifting last year after a lapse of...

Tonga has won one gold medal and one bronze at the Pacific Mini Games 2022 currently being held in Saipan, Northern Marianas. 'Atamaama Tu’utafaiva (25) won the gold in women’s shot put. A bronze medal was won by the tennis team. At the 2019 Pacific Games in Samoa, 'Atamaama won a gold medal for Tonga with a near-record-breaking performance, also in the...

CNMI weightlifters Angel San Nicolas and Leonardo Apelo won a total of two gold and four silver medals in their respective weight classes in the 2022 Pacific Mini Games on Wednesday. In the men’s 96kg event, San Nicolas collected two gold medals and one silver. San Nicolas started with 115kg in his first attempt but was bested by Vanuatu’s Thomas Wilbur...

Over 100 New Caledonian and Tahitian supporters turned up for Wednesday’s highly anticipated 2022 Pacific Mini Games gold medal badminton match between the top two seeds at the Gilbert C Ada Gymnasium. The last rivalry showdown was at the Samoa 2019 Pacific Games where New Caledonia’s narrow 3-2 victory resulted in a three-way tie and a subsequent silver medal for...

Fijian Prime Minister Frank Bainimarama called upon nations around the world to seriously “speak the language of a nuclear-free world” and to join the wave of support toward creating a policy framework that considers the existential threat of the use of nuclear weapons that has devastating impacts on the environment. Bainimarama said that world leaders must also consider the long-term...

Coordination and effectiveness of humanitarian assistance should be strengthened to support civil society and local humanitarian actors because government system cannot cope alone with the magnitude of the climate crisis. Pacific Islands Association of Non-Governmental Organisation (PIANGO), Executive Director, Emeline Ilolahia echoed a strong call at the opening of the ECOSOC (Economic and Social Council) Humanitarian Affairs Segment, that is...

Fijian Prime Minister Voreqe Bainimarama has stated that Fiji will work with all states, large and small, to ensure a nuclear-free world and to heal the wounds of a dark nuclear legacy that continues to harm lives and communities throughout the region. “Today, Fiji is proud to join over 86 states to adopt a treaty on the prohibition of nuclear...

Although treatable and preventable, cervical cancer is the most common cause of cancer death in some countries. Leading experts have called on governments to accelerate cervical cancer elimination efforts across the Commonwealth, where it is estimated that one woman will die of cervical cancer every three minutes if no action is taken by 2030. Today, cervical cancer researchers, policymakers, academics, advocates,...

Small island nations are calling for strengthened global support for ocean and climate change action, just days before Commonwealth leaders convene in Kigali, Rwanda, to decide on the group’s priorities for the next two years. In their executive sessions later this week, heads of government are expected to discuss issues such as shared climate ambitions, financing climate and ocean action,...