BY JOHN HOUANIHAU
IT was an amazing feeling for young female para sprinter Jemina Otoa to win a silver medal at the XVII Pacific Games in Honiara, Solomon Islands, and to raise the national flag of her home country.
Ms. Otoa, a native of Kwara’ae, Malaita Province, placed second to win a silver medal in the women’s para-athlete 100-meter ambulant sprint.
Since she started competing in para sports, Otoa has flown the national flag and won medals while representing the Solomon Islands with pride in regional championships. However, she never had the opportunity to compete in front of her home crowd.
“As a para-athlete, raising the national flag and winning a silver medal in my own country and in front of my family, friends, and supporters makes the Pacific Games one of my most unforgettable, amazing, and happy memories to date.
“My mission as a para-athlete is to encourage others to take up sports and follow in my footsteps. Inspiring others who wear the same shoes as me is one of my future objectives,” Otoa told SOLOMON WOMEN.
Otoa expressed her gratitude to families, coaches, fellow para athletes, and supporters for making this amazing and joyful moment possible for her.
“I would like to express my gratitude to my families, fans, coaches, and supporters for their unwavering support, as well as to my para teammates,” she said.
The performance of the para athletes from the Solomon Islands at the just-finished Pacific Games 2023 was nothing short of extraordinary. They won a record haul of medals.
Even though para athletes are working extremely hard to help the nation succeed, they are still fighting for access to basic facilities. They look to improve in a number of areas in order to step up and advance their performance.
“At the XVII Pacific Games 2023, there has been a lot of progress, but there are still certain things that need to be done better to advance. The performance of para athletes still needs to be improved with better basic facilities.
“I want to make a request to the sports authorities. Please give us more facilities so we are ready for competitions in the future, as more para athletes have now competed in this game and many of them have won medals,” Otoa said.
