CAPTAIN Marques Whippy was an emotional man after the Fiji basketball men’s side claimed gold on Saturday in an epic final against powerhouse Guam.
Fiji, which was given wild-card entry to the Pacific Games after finishing third in the Melanesian Cup last year, mesmerised the
crowd with a 51-47 win.
Whippy, who played an instrumental role in their campaign, said the victory was quite special for him.
“This is a good one. The last one I won was in 2007 with my dad as the coach and its good to have my teammate then as the current coach now, Lai.
“I dedicate this win to my uncle who passed away, uncle Michael. The first time I put on the jersey, I was 15 years old and he was the coach so this is for him,” Whippy shared while holding back his tears.
“All of is have our reasons to play for Fiji and I thought I was done but then Lai gave me a call and said one more time so I thought that this would be a good time to bring the boys together and develop the future. Fiji is a rugby country but we are hoping that this win would put basketball up there somehow.”
Whippy hinted he may still be around for the next Pacific Games.
His teammates Joshua Fox and Filimone Junior Waqabaca were named in the Pacific Games basketball All Star team.
The focus would now turn to the basketball 3×3 competition which starts on Wednesday.
