Committee hopeful

THE Papua New Guinea Paralympic Committee is aiming to have up to six para-athletes represent the country at next year’s Games in Tokyo, Japan.
So far, only two para-athletes have qualified for the Games in July.
PNG Paralympic team head coach Peter Pulu said the upcoming national championships for para-athletes in Port Moresby would give them the opportunity to prepare for their qualifiers.
“We only have until May and I would love to see five to six of our para-athletes make it to Tokyo,” he told The National.
“I know our athletes have the determination to push for that so this next few months will be a crucial time for us.
“Nellie Leva and Morea Maroros are our only two para-athletes who have qualified for the Games.
“But they need to maintain and improve on their past performances so these championships will be crucial to their preparations.
“Qualifying is one thing but we need to show that we can compete against the best in the world.
“As a coach, it’s not only about qualifying but being able to reach the standard that is set by the best and this is something I’ve adopted in the para-athletes’ training.
“Our para-athletes are ready, they’ve been training very hard to see their progress and it’s going to be good because we’ll get to also see athletes from outside Port Moresby.
“It’s an abled championships where it is also inclusive for the para-athletes. I know all the para-athletes across the country have been waiting for this.”