Three more Pacific island lifters qualified for the Beijing Olympics after team trials held in Auckland last weekend.
Samoa’s Ele Opeloge and Papua New Guinea’s Dika Toua will join an Australian qualifier in the women, while Nauru’s Yukio Peter has also confirmed his place. Opeloge’s qualification is a superb effort for a young woman who only took up the sport two years ago. And it made up for the disappointment of her older brother Opeloge missing out after his recent failed drug test. Opeloge, a past Commonwealth Games bronze medallist and current Oceania champion in his weight division was a near certainty of qualifying for Beijing before his ban last month.
But Oceania Weightlifting Federation general secretary Paul Coffa is confident at least twelve lifters from the Pacific will qualify for Beijing with wildcards (invitation cards) yet to be allocated.
Among those already secure is Manuel Minigifel of the Federated States of Micronesia who won a silver medal at the last World Weightlifting Champs.
Weightlifting is considered to be the best chance for the tiny Pacific nations to win a gold medal at the Olympics with Minigifel and Peter, past silver medallists at World Champs level, and Toua a top ten finisher at the last Olympics.
OCEANIA CHAMPS RESULTS
MEN:
PLACING: COUNTRY:
1st New Zealand qualified two (2) lifters for Beijing
2nd Australia qualified one (1) lifter for Beijing
3rd Nauru qualified one (1) lifter for Beijing
WOMEN:
PLACING: COUNTRY:
1st Australia qualified one (1) lifter for Beijing
2nd PNG qualified one (1) lifter for Beijing
3rd Samoa qualified one (1) lifter for Beijing
