Samoa

Torch Relay Coordinator, Tafaese Spencer Tautu from the Ministry of Education Sports (MESC), believes there is great significance in the torch as Samoa prepares to host the Games.

“There is power in the torch that can mend bridges and bring different villages to ignite under the slogan of the Games and that is ‘one in spirit,’ he said. “I never imagined this would be the response of the people. This is the first time the Head of State has received the torch baton twice, first at his home at Falelatai and, again, yesterday at his residence in Vailele.”

There are different local caterers assigned to every venue’s dining halls, including on Savai’i, where Boxing will take place, with test runs of all their menus in preparation when the Games open on Sunday 7 July.

“There are caterers specifically for athletes and Technical Officialsand others for volunteersandVIPs,” said Analosa Manuele, Catering Coordinator of the Pacific Games Office.

“For the Pacific Games, we are working together with the caterers to make sure that the meals provided are hot, fresh, nutritious and safe for consumption.

About 3,500 athletes from 24 nations across the region will compete in 26 sports from next Monday.

Samoa was only awarded the hosting rights in September 2017 after the Tongan government claimed it could not afford to stage the event.

But Pacific Games Council CEO Andrew Minogue says the Pacific Games Office in Samoa has done a very good job in a very short amount of time to ensure everything is ready to go.

"The organising committee opened for business on the 1st of March last year so really it's only 15 or 16 months," he said.

The "Give Every Child a Future" project is the major international focus of civil society group Rotary as it celebrates 100 years of service in New Zealand, Australia and the Pacific.

Rotary will partner with the United Nations children's agency UNICEF to support the introduction of three vaccines in the region.

Vathinee Jitjaturunt of UNICEF Pacific said the vaccines targeted three diseases.

"This project I think it will be able to prevent diarrhoea, pneumonia and cervical cancer. These three diseases are high in the Pacific."

To have the students carry the baton brought the communities together in unison, manifesting the slogan of the Samoa 2019 Pacific Games, “one in spirit.” 

The Savai'i leg of the relay will continue on Tuesday and Wednesday before coming to Upolu.

People of all ages flooded the streets as the torch baton for the Games made its way through and the event was live-streamed on Facebook.

Speaking at the ceremony yesterday Samoa's Prime Minister Tuilaepa Malielegaoi thanked China saying the building of the Multi-Sport Centre aligns with the government's vision to grow Faleata as the sports hub of Samoa and the Pacific region.

The Multi-Sport Centre consists of two state-of-the-art indoor and outdoor netball courts built to international specifications. It also has the capacity to host badminton, basketball, table tennis, boxing and other indoor sports.

RLIF CEO Nigel Wood confirmed on the eve of Saturday’s opening round of Oceania Cup matches between New Zealand and Tonga at Mt Smart Stadium and Samoa and Papua New Guinea at Leichhardt Oval that the international body wanted to play games in the Pacific islands.

An RLIF meeting in Singapore earlier this month agreed that the Oceania Cup would be staged mid-year and at the end of the season on an annual basis, except in 2021 and 2025 when the World Cup is held.

Conducted by Football Federation Samoa, the draw used seedings based on FIFA rankings.

In the men's event, six teams had been set to be placed in Group A and five in Group B but due to an mistake on the day, five teams were drawn for Group A and six for Group B.

To rectify this, a straight swap was carried out in the match schedules between the groups.

Group A features hosts Samoa, Tonga, New Zealand under-23s, Papua New Guinea and Vanuatu.

New Caledonia are the top seeds in Group B, alongside American Samoa, Tuvalu, Tahiti, Fiji and Solomon Islands.

 Medal Ceremony Coordinator Kristian Scanlan says they will display the best of the island nation to other countries.

“Eyeing gold for the XVI Pacific Games is any athlete’s dream come true and the reason we’re bringing the best to the podium.”

More than 320 medal ceremonies will take place during the two weeks of sporting action.

Medal ceremonies are the most broadcast event during any Games and play an important role for all the sports.

There will be eight countries competing in five medal events for shooting. The competition will take place in the second week of the Games, from 15-19 July.

"The main priority of shooting is safety," said Technical Delegate from Australia, Judith Kent.

The shooting venue is Tafaigata Shooting Range, built in 2007 when Samoa last hosted the Pacific Games. 

It is located 15 minutes from Apia CBD and can hold 200-300 specatators.

"I had a look at the pistol range to see that everything has been in place, which was great.