Tahiti sweeps gold in men’s and women’s volleyball

Tahiti’s men’s volleyball team emerged victorious, securing the Sol2023 Pacific Games gold medal by defeating Papua New Guinea 3-0 (25-16, 25-17, 25-18) at a packed Friendship Hall on Saturday.

Vatea Taura’a of the Tahiti men’s volleyball team, expressed pride in the team’s performance, commending both the male and female players.

Reflecting on their journey, Tahiti’s coach said: “We are very happy about what we’ve accomplished. Despite losing to PNG in the pool game, we dedicated ourselves to rigorous preparation. From 4am this morning, we put all our practice to the test to overcome our weaknesses and triumph over Team PNG”.

PNG coach Matthew Walo acknowledged the disappointment in their performance. “The boys did not turn up to play today. Tahiti put up a brilliant effort, and they were hungrier for victory after our previous round pool win against them. Unfortunately, our boys could not match the exceptional skills of the Tahitian team in serving, intercepting, and quick shots.”

In the men’s bronze medal match Samoa defeated New Caledonia 3-0 (25-17, 25-23, 25-16).

In the women’s volleyball competition, Tahiti secured another gold medal by unseating reigning champions New Caledonia 3-1 (25-18, 25-23, 17-25, 25-21) in a closely contested match.

In the women’s bronze medal match, Fiji recovered from losing the first set to emerge victorious against American Samoa 3-1 (20-25, 26-24, 25-21, 25-22).

By Walter Sale and Meleseini Tufui, Pacific Games News Service