Strategic Partnerships OAA representatives recently engaged with a seminar hosted by the University of Queensland featuring Andrew Parsons, President of the International Paralympic Committee. His address, centred on the “inclusion revolution,” highlighted how Brisbane 2032 can inspire a more inclusive and equitable future. Mr Parsons was joined by a distinguished panel of experts and was visiting Australia in collaboration with the Brisbane 2032 Organising Committee and Paralympics Australia.
Pacific Mini Games – Palau Congratulations to Palau on a hugely successful Pacific Mini Games. The Pacific Mini Games in Palau, saw a record number of Member Federations win a medal -16 in total, and the first ever gold medal in athletics to the Marshall Islands, with Olivia Reed in the Women’s Long Jump.
Over the course of the five days of competition, 11 countries (COK, FIJ, FSM, KIR, MHL, NRU, NMI, PLW, PNG, PYF, VAN) broke National Records.
Palau Athletics worked tirelessly to ensure they had a strong pool of Technical Officials ready to support the Games and conducted training for more than 35 Technical Officials leading into the Games. Thank you for the continued support from both the Pacific Games Council (PGC) and the Oceania National Olympic Committee (ONOC) towards ensuring this training could take place and more so for ensuring that other MFs were able to send TOs to assist at the Games.
Athletics had more athletes and MFs competing than any other sport at the Games and was a huge success because of the commitment of the Palau Technical Officials and the experienced Technical Officials from Nauru, Guam, Cook Islands, FSM, Northern Mariana Islands, Tahiti, Australia, and New Zealand played a mentoring role—bridging experience with enthusiasm.
Social Media became one of the main sources of distributing athletics information and inspiring the fan base at the Pacific Mini Games. Across all platforms there were over 10 million views. Our collaboration with ONOC and ANOC continues to grow with our imagery distributed globally to traditional and social media outlets through the Games period. Palau Athletics Content Creators embarked on a flagship Content Creator Program seeing viewership of over a million on their native platforms.
World Athletics Congress / Championships – Tokyo As we approach the World Athletics Congress and Championships, we are pleased that all 20 of our Member Federations will be represented at the World Athletics Congress, a testament to the region’s commitment to global athletics. We are equally thrilled that 19 of our 20 Member Federations will be competing at the World Championships, showcasing the depth of talent and dedication within Oceania.
In preparation for the Championships, we are currently working with ONOC to explore the possibility of a pre-championship training camp in Fukuoka. This initiative reflects the strong partnership between our organisations and our shared goal of preparing athletes with the best possible support and opportunities.
Congratulations to our very own Sally Pearson who has been appointed as the World Athletics Championship Ambassador. We look forward to seeing Sally in Tokyo.
Oceania Cross Country Championships 23 August The Oceania Cross Country Championships, will be held alongside the Australian Cross Country Championships in Ballarat, AUS. With runners from eight countries running, it’s a true legacy from the hosting of the World Cross Country in Australia only a few years ago.
Oceania Cup – Tonga The next major athletics event in the Oceania Region will be the highly anticipated Oceania Cup—a dynamic team-based competition that brings together some of the best athletes from across the Pacific. This unique event will feature eight representative teams, each competing for the prestigious Oceania Cup trophy. Participating teams will include national and regional representatives from Australia, Regional Australia, New Zealand, Tonga, Hawai‘i, and composite teams from the three main sub-regions of the Pacific: Melanesia, Micronesia, and Polynesia.
In conjunction with the main event, the Oceania Masters Cup will also take place, providing an exciting platform for local master’s athletes to showcase their talents in a competitive environment. This parallel competition highlights Oceania Athletics’ commitment to inclusion and lifelong participation in sport, offering opportunities for athletes of all ages and backgrounds to be part of a major regional celebration of athletics.
