Kari, Toua take awards

By PETER PUSAL
WEIGHTLIFTING took the limelight for a second year in a row with Steven Kari and Dika Toua claiming the male and female athlete of the year awards at the 27th annual SP Awards in Port Moresby on Saturday.
The Commonwealth Games medalists were voted the best performers of 2018 where Kari added to his stature as one of the country’s greatest sportsman when he defended his gold medal from the 2014 Glasgow Games with a dramatic last lift in the men’s 90kg division on the Gold Coast last year.
Toua, who was unable to attend the awards night because she was at the Oceania Weightlifting Institute in Noumea, New Caledonia, won a silver medal at last year’s Commonwealth Games.
PNG Olympic Committee president Sir John Dawanincura, who’s also the PNG Weightlifting president, announced the winner of the male athlete of the year award.
Both lifters have won multiple SP awards with Toua having claimed the most female awards with six awards while Kari claimed his second trophy.
Kari, who won a gold medal at last month’s Arafura Games along with Toua and Morea Baru, thanked his coach Paul Coffa and the staff at the OWI and his sponsor Trukai, family and friends at his Hanuabada village for allowing him to focus on his weightlifting.
“I just want to thank God, my coach Paul Coffa and his wife, my family, my sponsor and everyone who supported me,” Kari said.
“I want to keep doing my part and winning medals. I want to make the country proud and at the same time I also want to give back to my community by coaching as well,” the 26-year-old said.
“I promise to keep doing well and I won’t let the country down.”
Kari edged out Muay Thai champion Lee Henry Garap, who defended his welterweight World Kickboxing Federation title last year, and cricketer Tony Ura to the main award while Toua beat tennis star Abigail Tere-Apisah and another cricketer Brenda Tau to take the decision in the female ranks.
Special guest Kerri-Ann Pottharst said becoming a champion was a process that needed talent, commitment to the sport and training, intelligent application of skills, tactics and good fortune.
The 54-year-old told guests, finalists and the media gathered at the Crown Hotel, that she had come through her own adversity in terms of serious injury, age and changing team combinations to eventually be an Olympic gold medalist at the Sydney 2000 Olympics after winning a bronze medal at the Atlanta Olympics in 1996.
Pottharst said champions and successful athletes needed help to get to the top and stay there and there was nothing wrong with asking for help.
The surprise of the night was the National Performance of the Year award which went to the Alotau Under-15s basketball team who beat 2018 Digicel Cup grand finalists Enga Mioks and multi-sport star Lois Garena.
The Milne Bay ballers managed to overcome adversity in funding, logistics and expereince to claim the title at the national championships in Port Moresby.
The feel good story of the night was the Backyard Sports initiative in East New Britain which won the Community Sports Initiative award. Coordinator Cleopas Warpit said the programme which had started in 2009 had had success in integrating sports with other initiatives in education and Church programmes in the local communities and positively affecting the lives of the youth.
“We’ve seen the benefit of this programme in our communities with families and children in Vunadidir gaining from it and I also want to thank the volunteers who have made it a possible through their hard work and dedication,” Warpit said.
The People’s Choice award went to the national mixed netball team, the Maleos, who hosted their first international series last year against world champions Australia and despite losing the series 2-1 took heart from the fact that they had won one game.
South Pacific Brewery managing director Stan Joyce used the event to announce his retirement from the company after having spent 12 years in the position and 24 years employed at the brewer.
He steps down on August 30.
The new award for the SP Awards was fittingly named the Stan Joyce Significant Support to Sport award which would be a standalone title from the 11 categories.
2019 SP Award winners: Male Athlete of the Year – Steven Kari, Female Athlete of the Year – Dika Toua, Junior Male Athlete of the Year – Geoffrey Loi (table tennis), Junior Female Athlete of the Year – Violet Apisah (tennis), Team of the Year – Barramundis (cricket), National Performance of the Year – Alotau U15 basketball team, Best Sports Person with a Disability – Steven Abraham (para athletics), Community Sports Initiative Award – Backyard Sports (multi-sport), Sports Official of the Year – Rarua Dikana (cricket), Sports Media of the Year – Jack Ami (The National), Sports Photo of the Year – Airborne by Simon Keslep (Port Courier).