Never in the history of Fiji men’s volleyball have they won gold in the Pacific Games and the current team aims to change that.
Preparation started seven months ago with the naming of the training squad which was later trimmed to 13 core players that would represent Fiji to the Solomon Islands.
Fiji volleyball was not part of the 2019 Games in Samoa due to administration issues that prompted the current executives led by Kemueli Naiqama to get its house in order ensuring the survival of the sport.
Naiqama was part of the 1999 men’s team that won silver in the Guam South Pacific Games and that has been Fiji’s best finish so far. V
eteran and one of the most experienced players in the current team Atonio Talemaimaleya shared their hunger to re-write history.
“We know that Fiji Volleyball does not have a good history in the Pacific Games. We’ve managed to win gold at the Oceania Championship which was held in Fiji in 2016 and later in New Caledonia, however, we are yet to achieve the same level at the Pacific Games,” Talemaimaleya shared.
“In the past we struggled because we did not have the facilities as volleyball is an indoor sport. Every weekend we play in the open court subjected to sunny, windy, and rainy weather, hence when we go for meets like the Pacific Games, the first thing we try to do is adapt to the change in environment and the indoor facilities.
“We are thankful to the current administration for getting Fiji Volleyball back to where it once was and giving us the best facilities like the Vodafone Arena and the FMF Gymnasium to play and train in.
“We’ve had some successful tournaments in those gyms, exposing the players to the type of facilities that they will compete in at regional meets like the Pacific Games.
“We have a good team and we’ve been training together for quite a while at the Vodafone Arena, so we’re really determined to bring back gold and create history for Fiji.”
The Fiji men’s volleyball team won bronze in the 1963 South Pacific Games that was held in Suva.
Fiji did not win any other medal in men’s volleyball until 1995 where they scooped bronze in Tahiti and silver four years later in Santa Rita, Guam.
