Gerega finishes 12th, Baru leads Team PNG at closing

TEAM Papua New Guinea’s results on day 10 (Sunday) of the Birmingham Commonwealth Games saw Lakona Gerega placed 12th, reaching a distance of 63.46m in the men’s javelin throw final.
Gold went to Pakistan’s Arshad Nadeem with a Games record of 90.18m. Grenada’s Anderson Peters won silver with a throw of 88.64m and Kenya’s Julius Yego bagged bronze with 85.70m.
Peniel Richard finished with three failed attempts in the men’s triple jump final.
Sharon Toako ended her competition in eighth place with a jump of 39.34m in the women’s triple jump final.
Squash players Feanor Siaguru and Madako Suari Jnr showed a lot of fight in their 0-2 loss to Julian Jervis and Cameron Stafford, from the Cayman Islands, in the men’s doubles Plate semifinals.
Meanwhile, silver medallist Morea Baru led as Team PNG’s flag bearer in yesterday’s closing ceremony (5am today, PNG time).
Baru won Team PNG’s only medal in the men’s 61kg of the weightlifting competition.
Chef de Mission Michael Henao congratulated Baru on his appointment.
“What a privilege it is to carry the flag of a thousand tribes, and what a privilege it is for the ream to be led by you,” said Henao.
Baru is no stranger to Commonwealth Games success. In 2018, he won silver in the Games on the Gold Coast.