Papua New Guinea has dominated the top 10 Pacific Islands men’s and women’s World Athletics rankings with Olympian Leonie Beu in the pole spot on the women’s standings.
Oceania Athletics released the list for Pacific Islands athletes as ranked by World Athletics dated 29 September.
For the women, Beu ranked first place with fellow Papua New Guineans Adrine Monagi in second spot along with Isila Apkup (fourth), Rellie Kaputin (sixth) and Scholastica Herman (eight).
In men’s ranking, Daniel Baul, Pais Wisil, Tovetina Tuna and William Peka were ranked third to seventh respectively while Leroy Kamau was ranked 10th.
Athletics PNG president Tony Green said the ranking lists show the top 10 male and female athletes from the Pacific Islands based on where they stood in the world body’s rankings.
Athletes get ranking points for their performances in each event depending on the performance and the category of competition that it is achieved in like a women’s 100m time of 11.60 seconds run at the Oceania Championships is worth more ranking points than running 11.60s in a local meet in Brisbane.
“The world rankings are a relatively new concept so there’s not much history (for PNG) to go by but we have been performing strongly at the Pacific Games for a few years now so you would expect PNG to feature strongly in any ranking list,” Green told The National.
“Like at any point in time if we want to select for a high level event these lists are a useful source of information. For us one of the main considerations is who is going to be in the best form at the time of the event.
“Clearly we got it right for Paris. A lot of work went into the selection policy to make it fair to all the athletes who could realistically be considered.”
Meanwhile, Beu who is now ranked the top female athlete in the Pacific, said the recognition was an honour and a humbling experience.
Beu made her Olympic debut in Paris where she progressed through the first round of the 100m. She took home the bronze in the 100m at the Oceania Championships in Fiji, and with Team PNG, broke the national record in the mixed 4x400m Relay receiving silver.
“It signifies the culmination of countless hours of dedication, sacrifice, and relentless pursuit of excellence,” Beu told this paper when asked of her achievement in the rankings.
“This achievement serves not only as a personal milestone but also as a reminder of the responsibility I carry to continue evolving and pushing the boundaries of my potential.
“It fuels my ambition to strive for even greater heights, motivating me to refine my craft and embrace new challenges.
“Ultimately, this recognition inspires me to lead by example, empowering other aspiring athletes to believe in the power of perseverance and resilience.”
Beu’s ranking score of 1,131 points was based on her top five performances in the 200m in the past year.
She ran three high quality 200m races in Suva this year and her 200m from the Pacific Games in Honiara still features in the ranking.
“Her ranking score of 1,131 is higher than any other female athlete from the Pacific, with Adrine second and PNG taking five of the top 10 placings for women,” Green said.
“In the men’s list US-based Alex Rose, who represents Samoa, clearly tops the ranking as he has achieved Olympic and world championship qualifying marks in the discus.
“PNG has six men in the top 10 which shows the strength of our team. PNG has more athletes competing at a higher level than most Pacific island nations because of the programmes that we have to assist athletes to stay in the sport for longer periods.
“Many countries find it hard to keep their athletes in the sport after they leave school and it’s a challenge for all of us so we have to be innovative and look for ways to retain athletes.”