The Pacific Games will be opened on 19 November, with 27 sports to be contested in Solomon Islands.
Australia will be well-represented across Olympic Combat Sports. Boxing, Judo and Taekwondo teams are in their final preparation phases for the multi-sport event.
What does the Pacific Games mean for #TeamCombat?
In the past, Australia has often sent development teams to compete at the Pacific Games. While this remains the case for certain sports, some athletes are preparing for the most important tournament of their careers:
Boxing – A huge opportunity presents itself for the 13 Australian boxers competing at the Pacific Games, as the event is a direct Olympic qualification event for Boxing. The winner of each Olympic division earns a quota by name for Paris 2024. This is the first opportunity for Olympic qualification, with World qualifiers to be staged early in 2024.
Australian boxers have previously had to qualify through Asia, and with smaller numbers competing across most Olympic divisions, all 13 boxers are confident they can earn their ticket to Paris 2024 by winning gold at the Pacific Games.
- Pacific Games Boxing Competition Dates: 27 November – 2 December
Taekwondo – Eight athletes qualified for the Pacific Games by winning gold in Olympic divisions at the 2023 National Championships in Perth last month. These athletes, plus an additional two, will remain in Honiara to compete at the Oceania Championships from 30 November – 1 December.
With world ranking points available at these two competitions that have an impact on Olympic qualification, the taekwondo group are all aiming to improve their rankings with strong results in Solomon Islands.
- Pacific Games Taekwondo Competition Dates: 28-29 November
Judo – A group of pathways athletes will represent Australia at the Pacific Games. Given there are no associated world ranking points for the competition, the HP group has turned their priorities to a conditioning block prior to an active international schedule at the start to 2024. This is a great opportunity for these emerging athletes to be involved in a large, multi-sport event.
- Pacific Games Judo Competition Dates: 20-21 November
Be sure to cheer on #TeamAUS and #TeamCombat throughout the Pacific Games!
SBS will be broadcasting the Pacific Games from 19 November – 2 December.
Pacific Games Team Lists:
| BOXING | JUDO | TAEKWONDO |
| Monique Suraci (W-50kg) | Anneliese Fielder (W-48kg) | Juliet Lahood (W-49kg) |
| Tiana Echegaray (W-54kg) | Saya Middleton (W70kg) | Stacey Hymer (W-57kg) |
| Tina Rahimi (W-57kg) | Alannah Joyce (W-78kg) | Rebecca Murray (W-67kg) |
| Tyla McDonald (W-60kg) | Korfoi Biu (W+78kg) | Reba Stewart (W+67kg) |
| Marissa Williamson-Pohlman (W-66kg) | Jordon Greenbank (M-66kg) | Ben Camua (M-58kg) |
| Caitlin Parker (W-75kg) | Ryan Koenig (M-73kg) | Matthew Summerfield (M-68kg) |
| Yusuf Chothia (M-51kg) | Carstens Beyers (M-81kg) | Liam Sweeney (M-80kg) |
| Charlie Senior (M-57kg) | Danny Vojnikovic (M-90kg) | Tyrone Staben (M+80kg) |
| Harry Garside (M-63.5kg) | ||
| Shannan Davey (M-71kg) | ||
| Callum Peters (M-80kg) | ||
| Adrian Paoletti (M-92kg) | ||
| Teremoana Jr Teremoana (M+92kg) |
