IT was early morning in Vunavutu, and Visila Kolitapa was already on her knees. Praying.
Her daughter Merewalesi would fly to Thailand the next day to compete in the Youth Olympic qualifying rounds. Before the prayers and packing, Visila sat with her thoughts and eleven years of watching her child learn how to take a hit and brace for more.
“It was a lot for her to take up,” she said.
“We didn’t even have the luxury to groom her for what she has become today.”
Merewalesi, 17, is a student at Sigatoka Methodist College, a boxer in the 60kg division, and a young woman heading to Thailand carrying Fiji’s hopes quietly on her shoulders.
It started, as many things in this family do, in the ring.
Her father Temo Kolitapa represented Fiji in amateur boxing from 1995 to 2001, competing at the South Pacific Games and Oceania Games. Her mother Visila is a former national boxer and current Boxing Commission of Fiji board member. Her brothers Alivereti Dodomo and Joe Nesta Rasovo Kolitapa have had their own stints chasing the same dream.
Merewalesi grew up inside all of that. But her own entry into the sport had a simpler beginning.
“My two elder brothers used to bully me,” she said.
“They treated me like a punching bag most of the time. I told mom and dad it was time for me to take up the sport — so I could return the punishment and all the bullying they had done for years.”
She was nine. She did not expect what followed.
“I didn’t realise it would come this far — that I would really, really fall in love with the sport and it would take me somewhere I’d never dreamt of.”
Eight years on, she trains at the Butterfly Boxing Club in Vunavutu Village under the watchful eye of her father. The days begin at 4am — morning prayers, then roadwork and technical drills until six, then school, then afternoon sessions with Temo, then a weight check that determines whether she eats dinner or settles for half a glass of water. Then sleep. Then the alarm again.
“Same thing, repeat over and over the whole week,” she said.
For much of her career she could not find opponents her own age or weight. She stepped into bouts against fighters two and three times older, two and three times heavier. She kept winning.
“Despite those challenges, I still strive to win every bout,” she said.
It was only in the past two years that she found competition within her own weight category. The margins, when the contests were finally fair, were clear.
Visila has watched every step of it. She speaks of her daughter with the steady pride of someone who knows exactly what the sacrifices cost.
“I am proud of my daughter and what she has achieved so young in life.
“She is a keen learner and a hard worker. I know she will go a long way and make her family and country proud.”
Her instruction to Merewalesi has not changed with the size of the stage.
“Make sure you’ll always be humble,” Visila said.
“A humble person will always get rewarded. Whatever you become in life, be humble. That’s the beauty of a character.”
Merewalesi carries that with her to Thailand. She also carries a message back to the girls watching from outside the ropes.
“It doesn’t matter that it’s seen as a men’s sport.
“All the girls and women out there — you can be deadly too, in the ring and outside.”
Fierce … Merewalesi Kolitapa, 17, strives to win every bout despite every challenge. Picture: JOHN KAMEA
