Solomon Islands has won a Silver and a Bronze medal in day one of the Oceania Athletics Championship currently underway in Suva, Fiji.
The medals were won by long distance runners, Patrick Kam and Sharon Firisua.
Kam finished second in the men’s 5000m race behind Papua New Guinea (PNG) who finished first and a step ahead of Australia who finished on third place.
Sharon Firisua finished third in the women’s 5000m race behind Australia on second place and New Zealand on first.
This is a big achievement for both runners having competed against countries like New Zealand and Australia.
For Patrick Kam, this is a huge achievement who is new to the open category competition and battling against Oceania’s top athletes.
Kam represent Solomon Islands in the Commonwealth Youth Games in Samoa in 2015 and his most recent participation abroad was the in the Melanesian Games.
This is a good preparation for the duo as they prepare for the Pacific Mini Games in December.
The competition will continue today featuring the U18 men’s 100m heat and the 100m heat for the men’s open category.
Paul Ma____unikeni will run in the U18 category and Claytus Taqimama will compete in the open category 100m race today.
By CARLOS ARUAFU
