Robin Sapong
The following is the text of a letter to the Oceania Athletics Championships Council and Headquarters
DEAR OAA Family and Friends,
As 2024 comes to a close, it is important to look back and reflect on the year that was and the successes that we have enjoyed.
The Oceania Athletics Championships held in Fiji in June 2024 were a wonderful opportunity for the Oceania Region to celebrate an all-inclusive Championship event. Oceania Athletics welcomed our Para athletes to the Championships along with our Masters Athletes who joined our Senior, Under 20 and Under 18 athletes. Technical Officials from all over the Region showed why Oceania Athletics is a leader in Technical Officiating worldwide. Fiji hosted the first Pacific Island Continental Tour Meet and we hope to have many more in the future. The Area Association will continue to innovate in the competition space as we move forward.
The performances of our Oceania Athletes over the past year have been amazing, with National, Area and yes ONE World Record tumbling at all turns. After the success of the Oceania Athletics Area Championships in Fiji it there was no doubt that our athletes would shine in the Olympic and Paralympic Games.
Whilst we can’t list all the incredible performances of the past year, here is a quick reminder of how fabulous 2024 was:
Olympic Gold
Nina Kennedy (AUS) Pole Vault
Hamish Kerr (NZL) High Jump
Para Gold
James Turner T36 (AUS) 100m, 400m
Vanessa Low T63 (AUS) Long Jump
Anna Grimaldi T47 (NZL) 200m
World Indoor Championships
World Champions
Hamish Kerr (NZL) High Jump
George Beamish (NZL) 1500m
Nicola Olyslagers (AUS) High Jump
Other Key results globally:
World U20 Championships
Gold
Ethan Olivier (NZL) Triple Jump
Delta Amidzovski (AUS) Long Jump
Australia Mixed 4x400m Relay
World Race Walking Teams Championships
Gold
Isaac Beacroft (AUS) U20 10km
2024 Diamond League Champions
Matt Denny (AUS) Discus
Nina Kennedy (AUS) Pole Vault
World Record
Jessica Hull (AUS) 2000m
We have continued to grow our education opportunities throughout the Region with Kids’ Athletics now experiencing record numbers of athletes participating. In 2024 we welcomed our first cohort of Bronze Referees under the revamped World Athletics Referees Education Certification System who joined our Silver and Gold Referees. Our Coach education continued to grow and with the introduction of the Oceania Athletics Coaches Advisory Panel in 2024 we look forward to growing our Oceania Coaching Community.
The OAA Congress met in June in Fiji and made significant amendments to the OAA Constitution, amongst those changes, Gender Equity on the OAA Council, full membership to the OAA Council of the OAA Athletes Commission Chairperson, Term of Office of the Council, and the inclusion of the OAA Safeguarding Policy.
The OAA Commissions and Committee have continued to meet and this year the Association introduced the Oceania Athletics Association Masters Athletes Commission. This Commission has already made significant advances in servicing our Masters Athletes throughout the Pacific and will continue to look for more opportunities leading into the 2025 OAA Masters Cup to be held in Tonga in October/November 2025.
The Oceania Athletics Athletes Commission held its first election in Fiji, and we were delighted to see Dame Valerie Adams elected to the role of Chairperson, a role she also holds at World Athletics.
The Oceania Athletics Competition and Development Commissions continued with their activities and to assist the OAA Council in their decision-making processes relevant to these Commissions.
As the year drew to its conclusion the Oceania Council was pleased to share the 2022-2028 & Beyond Strategic Plan which will be released in early 2025. This Strategic Plan ensures that the Area Association is in alignment with World Athletics moving into the future, with our Pillars clearly identifying our way forward: Sustainability, More Participation. More People, More Fans, More Partnerships! This is an opportunity for us to build on our strong foundations and to move to the future with renewed enthusiasm and purpose.
In 2025 we will meet in Rarotonga, Cook Islands for the OAA Congress and at this time we will work with each of our Member Federations to ensure that they too are aligned to both the World Athletics and Oceania Athletics Strategic Plans.
We offer our sincere thanks to World Athletics under the leadership of Seb Coe and to John Ridgeon for their continued guidance and ongoing support. As one of the three Oceania Council Members who sit on the World Athletics Council we have had the good fortune to represent Oceania at several important forums and meetings and we look forward to Oceania continuing to contribute on the global stage in the future.
We take this opportunity to thank and acknowledge all our 20 Member Federations and three Associate Federations for their dedication to our sport and to the many volunteers and staff members across our Federations who continue to ensure the efficient running of our Federations. I would also like to thank my fellow Council Members and our OAA Headquarters Team who go above and beyond to assist our Member Federations.
Finally, before I sign off, we want to send our thoughts and prayers to our Athletics Vanuatu Family and the people of Vanuatu during this difficult time.
Thank you everyone for your contributions, we look forward to another successful year in 2025.
