"Games Fever" grips

the islands

From DON BARRETT, in Port Moresby.

With less than six months to the Third South Pacific Games in August, that triennial Pacific malady, “Games Fever”, is gripping countries from the Cooks to Guam, from Tahiti to New Guinea.

Deadline for entries was February 15, in Port Moresby, but at that date only seven territories had submitted details. Two more turned up shortly afterwards, and others are coming in all the time. Some of the figures will no doubt alter. The Games will be the biggest yet in terms of com petitors and the number of sports con tested.

Home country, Papua-New Guinea, will still probably have the largest team—247, including officials. New Caledonia advises it will send 237, of whom 207 will be competitors.

French Polynesia aims at 138 com petitors and 22 officials.

British Solomon Islands will send 63 competitors and four officials— a much larger team than had been anticipated.

Nauru almost certain to fly direct, will bring a total of 47. Gilbert and Ellice Islands are endeavouring to arrange to come via Nauru. Wallis and Futuna has surprised with a team entry of 53—including a Rugby Union side.

Disappointment

Smallest entry to date is from Tonga, which will have only 28. The absence of a Tongan Rugby Union side is a matter of great disappoint ment to the Games organisers and to thousands of people in Papua- New Guinea who were looking forward to a traditional Tonga-Fiji clash.

The Tongans are making a Rugby Union tour of New Zealand this year and no amount of persuasion could lead to them sending a team to the Games as well.

The size of the British Solomons team is most encouraging. Sport is booming in this country, which has perhaps too often been regarded as a dreamy backwater. The BSIP soccer team is sure to give a good account of itself, as in the past two Games.

The leading basketball countries are likely to find the BSIP harder to beat now, because for the first time Chinese players will be in the side, and coaching is in the hands of two American priests, Fathers Louis Morisini and Mike Bellenoit. Fr.

Mike starts talking when you are still 30 yards away—and he’s talking winning. His enthusiasm is contagi ous, his energy legend.

No matter what size the New Hebrides team, main interest and hopes for a gold medal will centre round star sprinter Charles Godden.

Veteran athlete Alan Bell seems at last to have forsaken the role of competitor for the role of coach and his enthusiastic support of young athletes will be a big factor in New Hebrides bid for medals. Bell is try ing all avenues to get top competi tion for Godden and his other hopes.

New Caledonia is to make a deter mined bid for supremacy in athletics and swimming. The track and field team will number 60—bigger than that of host country Papua and New Guinea.

Noumea gold medallist Wakalina (javelin) and Beer (shot) are now reigning French and national cham pions. It is doubtful if sprinter Jacky Pothin will win his third 100 metres gold medal. There are younger athletes coming on although not much has been heard of them to date.

French Polynesia will rest their sprint hopes on Bourne. A leg injury kept him from representing France at the Mexico Olympics but he still has the fastest times of any South Pacific athlete over 100 and 200 metres.

New Caledonia will be all out to revenge their soccer defeat at the hands of French Polynesia at the second Games. At whatever stage of the competition these teams clash, the match will be bitterly contested.

Fr. Paul Brousseau —who hails

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from Canada—has high hopes of his Noumea volley-bailers beating the French Polynesia team. Last year for the first time a Noumean team beat a visiting Tahitian team.

Nauru’s indestructible distance runner Robbie Morgan Morris will have his heart set on winning the big treble—s,ooo metres, 10,000 metres and the marathon. Fijian runners could challenge his supremacy. Suva Games star Mike Joyce is back in Fiji and is coaching the young dist ance stars who are already turning in good times.

Fiji should remain supreme in Rugby Union, with possibly the P-NG team the ones to offer a seri ous challenge. The Fijians’ weight and experience will tell.

Fijian boxers will enter the ring as fit and well trained as Stan Brown can have them. He has arranged a good deal of competition for his squad—something that some countries miss.

Confident

Tongan yachtsmen are confident of giving a good account of them selves despite their lack of experi ence with the Fireball class. Tongan athletes will be out to snatch the medals they feel they lost at Noumea because of Sunday competition.

Tuipoluta, if he has held his form, should be hot favourite for the hurdles double.

And how are P-NG athletes?

Australian coach John Cheffers has been appointed to a position with the Territory’s Department of Education and will take up the office of chief athletics coach for Papua-New Guinea on his arrival in Port Moresby late in February.

The P-NG Amateur Athletic Union has set high selection standards and the size of its team will ultimately depend on how many athletes reach or approximate these standards.

Mill Welbourne who now must be regarded as something of a veteran, is back in training. The warmer climate of Port Moresby will suit him better than the condi tions he encountered at Noumea and he could still be a force to be reckoned with.

Four hundred metres runners, Damien Midi (silver medallist from Noumea) and Eliab Wuat are train ing hard. If Midi reaches top form he could well reverse the result and

shade New Caledonia’s star, Lacabanne.

Men’s sprint hopes will probably rest with Meli Muga. This very fast starter missed the Noumea trip through illness. He is unbeaten over 100 metres in the last three years and is fit and training hard.

P-NG should again field a smart men’s 4 x 100 relay team—they will be out to score a “hat trick”, having taken the gold medal in this event at the first two Games.

High jumper Peiwa Waea has cleared 6 ft 5 in. since his trip to Noumea, and if he can properly master the straddle style, could well jump higher than this at the Games.

Australia’s Laurie Peckham is en thusiastic over this young jumper.

Distance hopes will centre on Army Corporal Phillip John, who is being carefully trained by former Australian Olympic marathon runner Captain Claude Smeal. How well this lad will do against Robbie Morgan Morris and the Fijian stars will depend a good deal on his pre sent build up. He is young and much more will be heard of him.

Women bronze medallist Neomi Taraingal could have her chance this year. She shaded out the New Caledonia girls at Noumea to finish behind Fiji’s veterans. If she can strike top form at the right time she has the ability to shatter the Fijian women’s sprint supremacy. P-NG will field a strong women’s 4 x 100 relay team, including at least two of the team that won a bronze medal at Noumea, as well as

Taraingal.