Despite the obstacles, the Yasawa athletics team crossed rough seas to be part of the Tuckers Ice-Cream Fiji Primary Schools Athletics Championship at the HFC Bank Stadium in Suva.
The two-day event will start tomorrow and will conclude on Friday.
The team received support from neighbouring hotels for transportation and accommodation.
“Vinaka Fiji, a charitable organisation in Yasawa generously supported our journey from the islands to Denarau and Suva,” head coach Simione Raogo said.
He said parents also played a vital role in enabling their children to participate in such competitions.
He said exposure for students was the significant focus for the team as they brought 105 athletes from Yasawa North and South, representing nine primary schools.
This is their second year of participation, and they have increased the numbers from 85 last year to 105 this year.
With six weeks to prepare for the competition Raogo said the students were eager to compete.
While they will be participating in both track and field events, Raogo said they had chosen not to compete in the high jump.
“We were able to grab silver and bronze medals last year, so this year we are aiming to win gold medals this year,” said Raogo.
“We are here also to expose our students, we know the level of competition we are going to face with the Suva schools and other schools, but we came here to do our best and to win medals.”
For the Yasawa team, even winning a single gold medal would be a significant accomplishment.
Raogo said he was pleased with the progress of the team and acknowledged that they still had a long way to go in their development.
“For many of the students, this trip to Suva represents their first time training on proper tracks, as they are used to training on the grounds back at school. This experience provides us with a valuable opportunity to expose the students to higher-level facilities and competition.”
He said living on the islands presented challenges, particularly in terms of transportation and financial resources.
