Sporting Time In Caledonia

The Caledonian sporting calendar began this year with the visit of Fijian footballers and boxers to the east coast nickel mining town of Thio. Highlights of the weekend were a boxing evening and a soccer match be tween the Thio players and a selection from Suva.

The soccer match resulted in a 2-2 draw. For the boxing, there was disappointment when two Cale donians failed to appear to meet their Fijian rivals, however five bouts were staged between the two islands.

Fiji gained three victories, and the Caledonians two.

Shortly afterwards, it was the swimmers who gained the Caledonian sporting limelight. In Noumea, Andre Mouren, 14, broke the French record for his age in the 200 metre butter fly, 2 min. 25.7 secs. At the same time a Caledonian girls’ team, Dolores Anewy, Ghislaine Jauselon, sisters Nicole and Brigitte Brulin, broke the French record for the 4 x 200 metres freestyle in 10 min. 18.9 secs.

Fijian and New Zealand boxers visited Noumea for an international

evening on February 13. Ne\ Hebrides boxers scheduled to appea were unable to fly across when ai traffic was suspended during th passage of cyclone Dolly.

Three amateur bouts were fough between Caledonians and Fijians, th Caledonians victorious in all. In th two major contests, Etuati of Ne\ Zealand defeated the Fijian Kalivit when the fight was stopped by th referee in the second round.

Then popular New Zealam champion, Billy Opetaia, who has hai numerous wins before his Noume fans, was defeated by Fijian Oseniviti, with a KO in the fiftl round.

At the end of that weekend nin table tennis players and 19 member of Noumea’s Underwater Activitie Club flew to Auckland to meet thei New Zealand counterparts.

In the meantime, before the re sumption of school in March, Cale donian swimmers were preparinj their championships for the end o February. It is then expected tha a Caledonian swimming team ma; visit Tahiti early April, for th( inauguration of the new pool unde construction for the next Games.