Restrictive eligibility rules upheld

The Pacific Games Council decided to uphold the eligibility rules implemented in the 2007 South Pacific Games in Apia, Samoa allowing only U.S. citizens or citizens of the islands/nations they are representing to compete in the 2009 South Pacific Mini Games in Rarotonga, Cook Islands.

The decision came after the Charter Review Committee submitted its proposal to revert to the old rules used in the 2005 South Pacific Mini Games in Palau, giving expatriates and longtime residents of the island they are representing a chance to join the SPG and Mini Games.

Executive Council disapproved the committee’s recommendation during a meeting held in Rarotonga last month thus the proposal was put into a vote with only seven islands/nations favoring the rules implemented in 2005.

It requires a two-thirds vote or 28 affirmative votes from 41 eligible voters to approve the proposal. The charter review committee proposal drew only 14 affirmative votes.

The CNMI is one of the PGC member-islands which voted in favor of the eligibility rules used prior to the Apia Games, as the Commonwealth has many longtime residents who wanted to compete in the SPG and Mini Games.

Northern Marianas Amateur Sports Association president Michael White, who attended the Cook Islands meeting and was a member of the Charter Review Committee, delivered the bad news to CNMI sports officials in last week’s NMASA meeting.

“I shared the disappointment of the membership that we were not able to secure a change in the eligibility rules. Because of the way the matter was presented to the Council, I was not able to propose the amendment which we previously discussed that would have allowed people who competed prior to 2005 to compete in the future,” White said in a report made available for NMASA members.

“I will submit this proposed amendment at the Council meeting which will be held during the Games next year. If passed, it would take effect for the 2011 Pacific Games in Noumea, New Caledonia,” he added.

The “citizens only” policy in the 2007 edition of the South Pacific Mini Games in Apia was the reason why the CNMI only sent a lean delegation to Samoa last year.

The Commonwealth participated only in athletics and beach volleyball. Tyrone Omar competed in 100m and 200m races, while the CNMI’s beach volleyball squad was composed of Tyce Mister and Mark McDonald (men’s) and young guns Melissa Halaby and Nina Mosley (women’s). SPG veteran Russ Quinn coached the CNMI spikers.

Table tennis and lawn tennis were interested to compete in Samoa, but have players who are non-U.S. citizens.

The CNMI’s table tennis team, which was composed of Chinese, Filipino, and Nepalese players, won a bronze medal in the 2005 South Pacific Mini Games in Palau. CNMI netters Kana Aikawa, Todd Montgomery, Tim Quan, and player-coach Jeff Race also participated in the Mini Games in Palau.

Of the four CNMI bets, only Aikawa does not hold a U.S. passport thus despite showing interest to represent the Commonwealth in Samoa, she failed to make it to the SPG last year. Aikawa holds Canadian and Japanese passports, but honed her tennis skills in the CNMI since she was in grade school and was a gold medalists in the women’s singles and mixed doubles in the 2006 Micronesian Games.