New Caledonia end with a blast

 NEW Caledonia won double gold in the three-kilometre open swim meet at the end of the swim event of the 2015 Pacific Games held off Loloata Island,  outside Port Moresby, early yesterday.

Thibaut Mary won the men’s event in 40.49.66, while his compatriot female swimmer Charlotte Robin (47.13.25) cruised in the gruelling westerly winds to bring the New Caledonia medal tally to 21 gold medals in swimming. 

Hugo Lambert of Tahiti (40.52.18) picked up silver, while New Caledonia Jeremie Dufourmantelle won the bronze (40.55.18) in the men’s open water event.

In the women’s race, Robin got off to a flying start, cruising at the same pace to complete first two kilometres and powered home to win the gold medal before Fijian Matelita Buadromo (49.02.72) came in for silver and Leilani Flament picked up bronze in a time of 49.03.83.

Despite the disastrous and delayed start of the competition, the event ran smoothly. 

This was the first open swim event that will go down in the history of the Games.

The Games Organising Committee did nothing to set up markers for the event until yesterday morning when FINA technical delegate Mathew Dun had to step in to do the markers for the race to start just after 8am.

PNG Swimming officials were equally disappointed with the organisation on the last day after enjoying the smooth hosting of the swimming competition at the BSP Arena Aquatic Centre over the past nine days.

2015 Pacific Games swimming competition manager Elizabeth Wells described that competition as the best ever seen at the Pacific Games for a long time.

“We had an overwhelming number of records tumble at the pool by leading swimmers such as Lara Drangeon (New Caledonia), Emma Terebo (New Caledonia), Ryan Pini (Papua New Guinea) and Amini Fonua (Tonga) during the nine-day event at the swimming pool,” she said.

Lara and Pini were named as the outstanding swimmers of the tournament because of their continuous smashing of Games records during the 2015 Pacific Games.