Earlier this month, athletes from 23 nations and territories across the Pacific gathered in Palau for the XII Pacific Mini Games. Pacific Newsroom recently spoke with two of the returning athletes who are members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints after the Games. These athletes shared what motivated them to stay resilient as they competed.
“Let these Games be a shining example of what we can achieve when we stand together,” said President Surangel Whipps, Jr. of Palau at the opening of this year’s Games.
Judy Solo’ai of New Zealand was awarded the bronze medal in women’s 86kg+ weightlifting overall, bronze in the Clean and Jerk, and fourth in the Snatch on 5 July. She said the Games was her first international competition and her first time representing New Zealand at this competitive level.
“It took a lot of hard work and consistency to get here,” Solo’ai said. “My experience at the Games was very positive, and it has ignited a spark for me to want to continue with my sporting career in weightlifting.”
She felt blessed to connect with other Latter-day Saints across the Pacific and relate to them through her past experiences serving a mission for the Church and attending Brigham Young University–Hawaii.
“I have been approached by women and told I was an inspiration of female strength and ambition,” she said. “I hope my example as a Pacific female athlete will inspire more women to follow their goals and dreams.”
Monica Saili-Hiatika of New Zealand finished fifth overall in the women’s 77kg weightlifting competition on 4 July. She placed sixth in both the Snatch and Clean and Jerk.
“It meant the world to me knowing that I am back on the world stage,” Saili-Hiatika said. “I competed internationally in swimming when I was a teenager and quit in 2015 due to health issues … Now, here I am 10 years later competing in a new sport, on a stage I never thought I would see again.”
When she began weightlifting near the end of 2024, she believed she could only succeed in the sport for a couple years.
“My younger self always thought that the older you get, the less options you have for competitive sport. Boy, was I wrong,” she said. “Seeing the array of people and ages at the Games, it motivated me to know that, so I long as I stay disciplined, I have many more years to show that I have a lot more in me.”
The following athletes who competed in this year’s Pacific Mini Games in Palau are also members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
Errol Qaqa of Fiji took home the gold medal in the men’s 110-meter hurdles on 7 July, finishing the event in just 14.59 seconds.
“We have to lead by example, so I’m glad I was able to go through with gold,” Qaqa said in a Team Fiji interview. “I had done the hard work back at home, so I knew I could bring it, but at the end of the day, it was all just to focus and finish the race healthy and strong.”
Read about Qaqa’s faith and how it helped his journey to excelling in track and field here.
Maika Pedro of Samoa won silver in the men’s 110-meter hurdles on 7 July — his first medal.
Sienna Fesolai of New Zealand took home the silver medal overall in women’s 69kg weightlifting on 3 July. She was awarded the silver medal in the Clean and Jerk and the bronze in the Snatch.
Waisiki Komainaiqoro of Fiji placed fourth in the men’s triple jump on 7 July and fifth in the long jump on 4 July.
Tu’i-Alofa Patolo of New Zealand won the bronze medal in the Snatch of the women’s 86kg+ weightlifting competition on 5 July. She placed fourth in both the Clean and Jerk and the overall weightlifting competition.
“Regardless of the size, scope, and seriousness of the challenges we face in life, we all have times when we feel like stopping, leaving, escaping, or possibly giving up,” Elder Carl B. Cook of the Presidency of the Seventy said to Latter-day Saints during the April 2023 General Conference. “But exercising faith in our Saviour, Jesus Christ, helps us overcome discouragement no matter what obstacles we encounter.”