At Last – The Oceania Championships

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It took five venues and a move into the New Year but the 2020 Oceania Championships went off without a hitch in all of Auckland, Melbourne, Sydney, Perth and Nauru. Eight nations — Australia, Fiji, Nauru, New Zealand, Niue, Samoa, Solomon Islands and Tonga, plus a guest from Pakistan – and 130 lifters went to the starting line in one or more of the host cities.

The team titles both went Australia’s way, 80 to 60 over New Zealand in the Womens and 80-71-44 over New Zealand and Nauru in the Men’s. But the big individual performances came from the Kiwis and the Pacific –

• • Karlina Tongotea stunned with 533kg at 72kg, an all-time great Women’s performance of 633 points.
• • Riria Ropati also set a Total WR at 100kg, her 599kg just missing the magic marks of 600kg/600 points.
• • Stanley Cocker of Tonga was Best Men’s Lifter, 916kg as a light Super, bringing in 605 points.
• • Nauru’s Bob Adam took out a venerable World Record with 304kg in the 94kg Squat, AI Tamaki missed a similar record in the 120s, while Keith Holder was Best BP with 212kg at 105kg.
• • The big showdown at 85kg fizzed when Taggart Duburiya bombed in the Deadlift but Josh Tukua’s 740kg was another standout.

And there will be more this year. The 2021 Oceania Championships are on in Whangerai New Zealand late November. There more records and big numbers will surely be put up.