Six gold for Monash runners at PNG games
Monash caused an upset by winning six events at the Papua New Guinea Union of Students (NUS) Games in Port Moresby from 21-29 June.
Alex Howard surprised locals at the games in the 1500m when he beat PNG’s champion long-distance runner Sapolai Yao of University of Goroka by one hundredth of a second.
In the men’s and women’s 100m, Jerome Morfaw and Anna Ross, who started as clear favourites, won convincingly.
Tarli Bird won the women’s 1,500m and 3km and the Aussies also proved too fast on the field by winning the 4x100m as well as 4x400m women's relays. Monash took home 14 medals in total.
Unitech men won the 4x100m and 4x400m finals.
The Games included students from 17 tertiary institutions.
Monash Sport Director and TeamMONASH™ Chef De Mission Mr Martin Doulton said Monash’s participation in the Games was a great opportunity to establish and build on relationships with our northern neighbour through the medium of friendly sporting competition.
“We hope that Monash will be able to reciprocate the University of Technology’s hospitality at a sporting competition in Australia in the near future,” Mr Doulton said.
It was the first time an overseas university had attended the Games.
In addition to Mr Doulton, TeamMONASHä athletes was supported by team managers Trevor Vincent and Dale Stevenson and accompanied by Oceania Foundation Executive Director Anne King.
A planned visit to the Bomana war cemetery, where many Australian soliders were buried, was initially curtailed after the Australia High Commission warned about tribal violence in the area. The visit was completed the following day.
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