Ardie Savea, Blues v Moana Pasifika. Photo: Andrew Cornaga/www.photosport.nz
Rugby
Moana Pasifika captain Ardie Savea leads the competition for the Super Rugby Pacific Player of the Year, despite not playing last weekend.
The Super Rugby Pacific organisation said Savea is on 36 points, six ahead of Chiefs flyhalf, Damian McKenzie, with three rounds to go before the playoffs.
Other Pasifika-heritage players in the running are Highlangers' Fijian co-captain Timoci Tavatavanawai on 26 points, and Waratahs' Langi Gleeson on 24.
Super Rugby Pacific will crown the competition's most outstanding player with the presentation of the inaugural Player of the Year Award.
The captains and head coaches of both teams nominate their top three players from the opposing team each week, allocating three votes, two votes, and one vote, respectively.
Mini Games
Fiji will compete in 12 sports at the upcoming Mini Games in Palau.
Fiji Associaiton of Sport and National Olympic Committee (FASANOC) said a total of 186 athletes, 73 male and 63 female, have been selected for the June competition.
The Games will open on 29 June.
Netball
The draw has been made for September's Netball World Youth Cup in Gilbraltar.
Fiji, who finished in the top four at the 2021 event, are in pool D with South Africa, Barbados and Trinidad and Tobago.
Cook Islands have defending champions New Zealand, Gibraltar, Malaysia and Zambia in pool A.
Samoa is in pool B with Australia, Scotland, Singapore and Northern Ireland; while Tonga will face England, Jamaica, Wales and Sri Lanka in pool C.
The four Pacific islands netball associations say they have completed two phases of trials each, which included players based in Australia and New Zealand.
The event will be held from 19-28 September.
League
The Fiji rugby league under-18 team will host the Tongan schoolboys in a one-off clash later this month.
It will be the first time the two teams are going head to head.
Both league organisations say this is part of development plans to strengthen the game in the two countries.
The match will be held at Churchill Park in Lautoka on 24 May.
Olympics
Outgoing International Olympic Committee president, Thomas Bach, will attend the Oceania National Olympic Committees' annual general assembly on Saturday, 17 May.
Bach is set to speak at the meeting, to be hosted by the Guam National Olympic Committee.
Seventeen national Olympic committees and seven associate members will be represented at the meeting.
Athletics
A US-based athlete has become the first Polynesian to win both the 100 and 200-metre titles at the Florida state high school competition.
Laiana Mcclinton, who has links to Samoa and Tonga, won both events on Tuesday, claiming two gold medals.
She stopped the clock at 11.75 seconds in the 100 metres and 23.67 seconds in the 200m.
