WEIGHTLIFTING Fiji (WF) will soon appoint a national head coach for the first time. In the past national coaches have been appointed for each international competition and the role had been shared between WF’s national development officer Josefa Vueti, strength and conditioning coach Henry Elder, and international referee and former national rep, Della Shaw-Elder. WF has been working with the Fiji National Sports Commission (FNSC) to identify and appoint an international coach to help take the sport forward to the next level. WF president Atma Maharaj said Government had announced the provision of funding for international coaches for selected sports a few years ago.
Weight-lifting has held off this offer, until recently, to enable it to build its foundation first.
“International Weightlifting Federation will soon be announcing a new qualification system for the Tokyo 2020 Olympics. This will require each athlete vying for places to compete in at least 6 international competitions and score points. Only the top 8 in each weight category in the world will be going to Tokyo,” Maharaj said.
“Our recent successes at Commonwealth Games and World Championships are no guarantee of future successes. Our focus will be on meeting the new qualification requirements set by IWF, so that our athletes represent Fiji in Tokyo. The qualifying process starts on November 1, 2018.”
