TEAM PNG SURGE TO 5TH SPOT ON MEDAL TALLY AT PALAU GAMES

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TEAM Papua New Guinea has moved up from 7th to 5th place on the medal standings at the 12th Pacific Mini Games in Palau, as of midday today, Day 7 of competition.

PNG now has a total of 44 medals, including 11 gold, 17 silver, and 16 bronze. This jump in the rankings comes after strong performances in athletics.

Last night, PNG sprint star Pais Wisil won gold in the men’s 100 meters, finishing in 10.51 seconds. It was a close race, with teammate Tovetuna Tuna coming second at 10.53 seconds for silver. Fiji’s Waisake Tewa took the bronze.

In the women’s 100 meters, Isila Apkup claimed a silver medal, while Scholastica Herman won gold in the women’s 800 meters final, clocking 2 minutes and 16.41 seconds.

In weightlifting, Steven Kari added a silver and a bronze in the men’s +110kg category. This marks the end of the weightlifting events at the Games.

The PNG men’s volleyball team also celebrated a big win, beating the Federated States of Micronesia 3 sets to 1. They now head to the semi-finals on Monday, 7th July.

In other results on friday, Siune Kagl took bronze in the men’s 10,000 meters.

In para-athletics, Donna Longbut and Manega Tapari earned more medals in the women’s 100m Ambulant sprint.