Veratau urges staff to help athletes with Olympic dream

Sports

THE Papua New Guinea Sports Foundation’s (PNGSF) new executive director has urged his staff to re-focus, change and work towards producing Olympic medal-winning athletes.
While delivering his Independence message to the staff, Albert Veratau outlined a new direction for the foundation for the duration of his term.
He said this included developing athletes to win medals in the Olympic Games and extending the foundation’s programmes to rural areas to unearth new talents.
Veratau said: “Why haven’t we won a medal in the Olympic Games?
“Why is it difficult for us to win something at the highest level?
“Let’s look at that as a target for us.
“I know it is one thing to aspire but it’s another to put the building blocks together to achieve it.
“Our destination is about making sure that millions of people play sports, have access to facilities and make the most opportunities to represent the country — not just in rugby league.
“It’s not only rugby league that makes this country who we are, it is every individual one of us contributing to different sports in this country.”
Veratau said contributing towards the development of different sports and athletes in the country was why the Government continued to fund the foundation.
“The government is expecting us to deliver on that, so have a fresh set of thinking, aspiration and agenda for the years to come,” he said.
“Our 46 years of independence have seen us come a long way.
“We are much better off than we were some years back.
“We have modern facilities that we didn’t have years ago, even in 1975 when we became independent.”