Primary school students get exposure at nationals

By PATRICIA KEAMO
FIVE primary school students from Lihir were among 360 athletes from 11 centres nationwide who competed in the PNG Air National Athletics Championships in Port Moresby last weekend.
Coached by former long distance runner Freddy Hongoworia without a proper track or training facility, the group had been preparing for the nationals despite the covid-19 pandemic.
For a small group who travelled to Port Moresby to gain experience, their efforts paid off as they claimed bronze in the Under-18 men’s 4x400m final.
“I am happy that they gained exposure at the nationals,” Hongoworia said.
“After this, they will have a lot of stories to share with their families and the other athletes back home.
“I see a future for Lihir athletics, we’ll go back and prepare for next year.”
As a level one coach and a former athlete, Hongoworia said he wanted to share his knowledge with others to develop sports in remote areas, so he obtained a recognition letter from Athletics PNG and started athletics in Lihir.
Using what he learnt from the Papua New Guinea Sports Foundation and abroad, he formed a team of 38 athletes.
But due to the pandemic and sponsorship constraints, they had to reduce the team to five athletes for the three-day nationals at Sir John Guise Stadium.
“These are Grade 7 and 8 students from Olekova and Sekunkun primary schools, and it’s their first time to compete in such an arena,” Hongoworia said.
“In August, eight of my athletes attended the New Guinea Islands championships in Kokopo.
“It was their first experience out of Lihir.
“I wanted to bring my athletes to the nationals, so they could gain experience and exposure.
“When we return, we will try to get more people involved in sports in our communities.
“I had to look for sponsors from the companies that I worked with like Lihir Business Service and Lihir’s National Catering Service who assisted us with ticket fares.”
Hongoworia said they only had a 400m grass track on which his athletes trained in Lihir.
“This is their first experience to run on a synthetic track,” he said.
“Compared to their times on the grass track, they ran good times here in Port Moresby.
“We don’t have training equipment so we just use whatever is available — empty cans for cones, sharpened bamboos for javelin; adapt and improvise.”