Sailors upbeat

By PARKER TAMBUA
SAILING siblings Teariki and Rose-Lee Numa, the only Papua New Guinea athletes who have so far qualified for the Tokyo Olympics, remain upbeat despite the Games’ deferral to next year.
Twenty-year-old Teariki told The National yesterday that the deferral, which was caused by the coronavirus pandemic, had given them for time to prepare.
“The deferral has had a positive and a negative impact on our preparations,” he said.
“The positive side is that it gives us more time to really work on our fitness and a few other areas that need improvement. The negative side is that it gives us one more year of sacrifices, considering Rose-Lee had taken a year off from her studies at the Pacific Adventist University and me resigning from my job.
“But I guess this also gives us both more time to train together. The more we train together, the better we become.”
Teariki and his 23-year-old sister are working on their fitness at Yachting Queensland in Australia.
“Our focus for now is just to stay safe and fit during these crucial times,” he said.
“We must stay focused on the prize and keep improving.
“We’re working closely with Yachting Queensland coach Danny Fuller using a training programme that will develop our skills.”
Teariki said their father Graham Numa, who is also an Olympian himself, had been giving them tips.
“Our parents are calm, knowing we have 15 months to prepare and get better for the big dance,” he said.
“Dad’s advice to Rose and I is to stay focused on the big prize at all times.
“At this stage, I’m not too confident on a podium finish but a top-10 result would be great.
“I’m just going to try to do as many events as I can to improve my confidence in big fleet racing.”