Toua looking to prolong career

By ROBINSON LEKA
PACIFIC Games gold medallist Dika Toua says she is not looking to retire any time soon as the veteran aims to qualify for her fifth straight Olympic Games this year.
The mum-of-two and fellow weightlifter Morea Baru returned from training in New Caledonia in July with all Olympic qualifiers cancelled at the time due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
“As you mature, you get stronger mentally, so my coach reckons I’ll get better as I get older,” said the Hanuabada native, who will celebrate her 37th birthday in June.
“I won’t make any promises about what I’ll do at the end of this year.
“The pandemic had affected all the championships, competitions and major events last year.
“This year is the Olympics and 2022 is the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham, England, so I’m keeping my fingers crossed about prolonging my career.
“Our preparations have been going very well, we’ve been having monthly competitions since last June with the help of our coaches, the weightlifting federation and the Papua New Guinea Olympic Committee.
“They’ve been supportive since our return from New Caledonia.
“I’m confident in my category (49kg), but I just hope that things work out.
“I’m pretty sure I’ll qualify for the Olympics at the Oceania Championships in Nauru in April.
“This will be another historical moment for me because it will be my fifth-straight Olympic Games, so excited to get to Tokyo, Japan.”
Toua said she took her switch from the 53kg division to the 49kg category in her stride.
“I set new Oceania records last year with 107kg and 78kg in the 53kg and 49kg divisions respectively,” she said.