Thirteen boxing athletes and two Para table tennis athletes have been named to the New Zealand Team for the 2023 Pacific Games.
The Para table tennis athletes are:
- James Goulding, seated singles and teams event
- Matthew Hall, seated singles and teams event
The boxing athletes are:
- Tasmyn Benny 50kg
- Christine Gillespie 54kg
- Jennifer Peters 57kg
- Erin Walsh 60kg
- Cara Wharerau 66kg
- Deanne Read 75kg
- Zain Adams 51kg
- Alex Mukuka 57kg
- Kalani Marra 63.5kg
- Wendell Stanley 71kg
- Emile Richardson 80kg
- Malcolm Mathes 92kg
- Patrick Mailata 92+kg
The boxing athletes are mostly experienced campaigners, with Benny, Walsh, Mukuka, Stanley, Richardson and Mailata all having competed at Commonwealth Games.
Mailata headlines the squad, returning to the New Zealand Team after turning professional in 2018. The 28-year-old competed at both the Glasgow 2014 and Gold Coast 2018 Commonwealth Games, winning bronze on the Gold Coast.
Benny is the other Commonwealth Games medallist in the team, having picked up bronze in 2018.
The athletes are expecting tough competition with the Pacific Games a qualification event for the Paris 2024 Olympic Games.
“We’re really pleased with this squad,” said Boxing New Zealand’s Mark Keddell.
“We have some seasoned campaigners in the mix as well as some exciting new talent so we’re looking forward to getting to the Solomon Islands and showing what we can do.”
The boxing competition at the Pacific Games runs from November 27th to December 2nd.
Para Table Tennis
James Goulding and Matthew Hall will compete both individually and together in the teams event at the Pacific Games.
It is the first time New Zealand has ever been invited to send Para athletes to the Pacific Games.
Goulding will compete in class 3 where he’s ranked New Zealand number one. He’s a three-time Oceania Para Championship medallist having won gold, silver and bronze.
“I am really proud to be representing NZ at these tournaments,” said Goulding.
“It’s going to be great to see how I measure up to the best in our region and also to tautoko our fellow Para brothers and sisters in our Pacific Para table tennis whānau.”
Hall also competes in class 3 and has won silver and bronze in the NZ Para Open Championships.
“The 2023 Pacific Games mark the first edition of the games in which Table Tennis New Zealand is eligible to have athletes participate in Para events,” said Table Tennis NZ Chief Executive Warren Ogilvie.
“This presents a great opportunity for our Para athletes to compete and gain international exposure against other high-calibre players and Paralympians in the region. We are looking forward to the opportunity to participate and are hoping for some great results."
The table tennis will be contested November 20th to 25th in Honiara.
About the New Zealand Team for the Solomon Islands 2023 Pacific Games
The 2023 Pacific Games will take place between 19 November and 2 December in the Solomon Islands. The Games are a quadrennial multi-sport event which celebrates sport and Pacific culture.
5,000 participants (including athletes, technical officials and support staff) from 24 Countries will compete across 24 sports at the Games. New Zealand is expected to be represented by approximately 70 athletes across archery, athletics, boxing, karate, Para table tennis, women’s rugby league nines and weightlifting.
The archery and boxing competitions in Honiara are qualifying opportunities for the Paris 2024 Olympic Games, while the weightlifting and athletics competitions are part of wider qualification opportunities for the Games.
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