Pacific Games 2023: Athletes to watch in the Solomon Islands at Sol2023
The 17th Pacific Games Sol2023 take place in the Solomon Islands from 19 November to 2 December. Olympics.com picks out some athletes to keep an eye on at the Games.
Some of the top athletes from the South and West Pacific region will be in action at the 2023 Pacific Games in the Solomon Islands from 19 November to 2 December 2023.
The Games will bring together sportspeople from many countries and territories in the area, plus invitational teams from Australia and New Zealand. Paris 2024 qualifying quotas will also be obtained in archery and boxing.
Olympics.com looks at some of the athletes who will be ones to watch at the Games.
Laisana Likuceva and Lavenia Tinai (FIJ) – women's rugby sevens
The Fijians are, unsurprisingly, heavy favourites in both men's and women's rugby sevens.
With neither Australia nor New Zealand entering those events, Fiji are expected to easily sweep both events.
Such is the depth in Fijian rugby union that none of the men's team at the Games this year were on the team that won Olympic gold at Tokyo 2020.
However, two members of Fiji's Olympic bronze women's team, Laisana Likuceva and Lavenia Tinai, will be in action with the Fijian sevens in Solomon Islands, and they will no doubt lead from the front with their experience.
Ryan Tyack (AUS) – men's archery
Ryan Tyack will be aiming to perform well enough to secure a qualification quota for Australia in the mixed team archery event.
The 32-year-old won bronze as part of Australia's men's team at Rio 2016 and is one of the few Olympic medallists competing in the Solomon Islands.
To obtain the Paris 2024 Olympic quota for Australia, Tyack would have to win the mixed team event alongside either Sarah Haywood or Laura Paeglis, depending on the results of the ranking round.
Jenly Tegu Wini (SOL) - women's weightlifting
Jenly Tegu Wini is one of the hosts' big medal favourites. She remains the only person from her country to ever have stood on a major international podium, finishing third and winning bronze in her weightlifting category at the 2018 Commonwealth Games.
She will compete in the women's 55kg event, and has a shot at winning three medals as Pacific Games weightlifting awards medals for the snatch, clean and jerk, and total lift separately.
Wini already has nine Pacific Games medals to her name, including three golds from 2015. Can she add to her collection?
Flagbearer Jenly Wini leads out Solomon Islands at the Rio 2016 opening ceremony
Caitlin Parker (AUS) - women's boxing
Caitlin Parker will hope to add to her long list of achievements in women's amateur boxing.
The 27-year-old middleweight fighter comes into the Pacific Games off the back of a silver medal at the 2023 World Championships earlier in March and with just six women entered at her 75kg weight class, she will be favoured to secure her Paris 2024 Olympic quota.
Twice a Commonwealth Games medallist, it would take a mighty upset for the Australian to miss out.
David Liti (NZL) - men's weightlifting
New Zealand's David Liti is looking to add to two Pacific Games bronzes from 2015 and a silver from 2019 when he competes in the men's +109kg division in Honiara.
Liti, the 2021 Commonwealth champion and a two-time Commonwealth Games medallist, is the current Commonwealth record holder in the category but having never stood on the top step at the Pacific Games may finally get a chance to do so.
The biggest obstacle in his way? Samoa's Sanele Mao, who is moving up from 109kg (a weight at which he would have been defending champion) to the +109kg for just his second competition at the heavier class.
How to watch the 2023 Pacific Games
Here is a selected list of broadcasters for the Sol2023 Games:
- Australia – SBS, NITV
- Solomon Islands – SIBC TV, TTV
- New Caledonia, Tahiti (French Polynesia), Wallis and Futuna – France Télévisions
- Papua New Guinea – NBC
- Fiji – Fiji TV
- Samoa – SBC TV1
- Vanuatu – VBTC
- Tonga – Tonga Broadcasting Corporation