Fiji Focus
Pacific's Biggest Sporting Bash
Organizers plan for best ever 2003 SPG
It's called the South Pacific Games. But by the time the final orange rays of the setting Suva sun casts its shadow over Laucala Bay as the 5,000 athletes and officials attend the closing ceremony to bid farewell, organisers hope Suva's 2003 games would be known as the "shopping games", or even the "walking games". This is the biggest challenge of medical doctor and veteran sports administrator, Robin Mitchell and his SPG organising committee - organising a two-week games that will have to be athlete-centred yet at the same time providing the necessary elements that will inject an enjoyable and very much an island atmosphere into the competition.
With more than 60 percent of the games centred in and around the Laucala Bay area, lying on the northern shores of the Suva peninsula, and with the Laucala campus of the University of the South Pacific contracted as the games village, Mitchell and his committee are not far from the target. One Laucala games venue alone, the National Stadium, will host five big sports.Apart from athletics, the stadium first built when Fiji last hosted the SPG in 1979, will also be the venue for rugby league, rugby touch, rugby union and soccer. Beside the stadium will be the new synthetic hockey pitches, and next to the stadium's newly upgraded carpark is the National Gymnasium that sits 1,600. Across the road from the gymnasium will be the new sporting complex, built under Chinese Government aid, that boasts a multi-purpose hall. The hall's floor space is three times bigger than the gymnasium and should comfortably sit 3,000. Next to it will be the swimming complex and beside that, a new six-court netball centre.
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"So for athletes, it will be a games that will not involve too much travelling because for over 60% of the sports, they will be able to walk to the venues, rather than wait for buses to drop or pick them," Mitchellexplains. "If they have to travel, then it will only be to central Suva which if you miss the shuttle bus, you can always catch a taxi for only F$2 or so."
Plans are even afoot to close off roads along the games venues in Laucala, turning them into pedestrian malls for the duration of the games from June 28 to July 12. This will allow organisers to create a Fijian cultural centre or Pacific village, just beside the games venues and games village. This is very much in keeping with the SPG 2003 mission of delivering "the most harmonious, athlete focused and culturally enhancing SPG, reflecting the Pacific at its best". The Pacific at its best is now the slogan of 2003 South Pacific Games.
Whether the cultural village will carry a Fijian or Pacific theme is yet to be finalised, Mitchell told Pacific Magazine. "We can even do both because the USP has got the Oceania Arts Centre, so we may do the regional one on campus and the national one outside. We're lucky because USP has got 12 owners, so the Pacific flavour is already there."
The village will have handicraft markets, traditional dancing exhibitions, food marts and a medal plaza that will host medal presentation ceremonies for some sports. A plus for the organisers has been the huge reservoir of ideas and concepts gleaned from previous games. These included the Sydney 2000 Olympics and 1999 Guam South Pacific Games. The cultural village concept has been borrowed from the 1969 Papua New Guinea Games.
For someone who is well travelled not only internationally, but also around the Pacific, Mitchell believes the Suva games may be remembered not only as the "walking games", but as the "shopping games" too. He says compared to other islands countries, Suva is an attractive shopping mecca for a wide range of products from clothing to kitchen utensils. This coupled with the presence of many garment factory outlets, Mitchell envisages many chartered flights out of Nadi and Nausori airports returning home full of shoppers.
Making the SPG 2003 a shopping games, or even a walking games is a deliberate policy of the organisers in their attempt to rope in the community and get them to reap some of the benefits of the games too. They had this in mind right from the word go when they successfully bid for the 2003 games in Samoa in 1997.
Host city, Suva was included in that bidding team and for the first time in the SPG history, the city was made a member of the SPG 2003 Council. This has worked wonders for the organisers. It is blessed too with the presence in the council of a very enthusiastic and enterprising mayor. Since taking office, Councillor Chandu Umaria has been able to set aside a "sizeable" budget that has gone towards beautifying the capital city.
Mitchell and his committee are also working closely with other city promotional groups like the "Visit Suva", the "Suva for Sale" and the city's Hibiscus pageant group. Plans are also underway to organise entertainment programmes and other community activities around the capital to coincide with the SPG.
Mitchell's proposed artist-list looks like a straight lift-out from Fiji and the Pacific's who's who in the music industry. Two Fiji-born artists now making their mark in the music scene overseas are among the lineup, namely Honolulu-based George "Fiji" Veikoso and Noumea resident, Gilman Lasaisuva.
A Sydney Olympics concept organisers want to introduce is the "adopt a school programme" where 22 schools in and around Suva will be selected to each represent a participating nation in the games. Officials and athletes of that nation will visit and familiarise themselves with the school while students and teachers for their part will support and cheer this nation's athletes during the games.
Getting the involvement and support of the Suva community is crucial for the SPG organising committee, given that this is one SPG that will be a privately funded one. To date, the committee has raised F$7 million from seven of the 12 corporate sponsors needed and secured five of the eight official suppliers required. The committee is optimistic it will reach its target, given the enthusiasm and support shown so far. Mitchell and his team believe they are well on their way to making the SPG 2003 the biggest and the most memorable bash the Pacific has ever had.
For more details, see http://www.spg2003.com
