Cook Islands to host series of meetings

Amendments to the Pacific Games Council Charter will be decided later this month when the Cook Islands host five meetings in Rarotonga.

Changes in the PGC Charter, particularly those that deal with eligibility rules, will be decided at the Executive Board Meeting on Sept. 21. The four other meetings are for chef de Mission and PGC sports committee (Sept. 19), PGAs marketing (Sept. 20), and PGC general assembly (Sept. 22).

The PGC Executive Board will have the final say on the recommendations of the PGC Charter Review Committee, which was formed last year to deliberate on the changes suggested by several PGAs.

Suggestions of the various PGAs regarding the eligibility rules were best reflected on the recommended revised Charter submitted by Andrew Minogue of Samoa.

Contents of Article 25, Section D which discusses citizenship and residency conditions for inclusion in a team selected by the PGA to represent its country/territory are as follows: “Be either a citizen of the country/territory the athlete is to represent at the Games and a resident of that country/territory for a period of not less than five years (cumulatively, whether consecutive or not); or, if not a citizen of the country/territory the athlete is to represent, be a resident of the country/territory for a consecutive period of five years up to and including the deadline for individual entries”; and “for the avoidance of doubt the temporary absence of an athlete from the country/territory of their citizenship (or, in the case of expatriates, temporary absence from the country/territory of their residence) for purposes such as education and sports training, military service and health care and other legitimate absences of a like kind shall be considered as residency.”

The group was chaired by David Tupou of Tonga and voted, 3-2, in favor of allowing expatriates and those who meet the residency requirement to compete in the 2009 South Pacific Mini Games in the Cook Islands.

Michael A. White, president of the Northern Marianas Amateur Sports Association and member of the PGC Charter Review Committee, is hoping that the board will adopt their recommendations and revert to the old eligibility rules implemented during the Mini Games in Palau in 2005 and before the SPG in Samoa last year.

Last year, the CNMI had a lean delegation to Samoa sending only athletes in the beach volleyball and athletics competitions. Other CNMI sports federations had shown interests in joining the Samoa Games, but had athletes who are non-U.S. citizens thus were ineligible for the quadrennial meet.

Kana Aikawa of tennis was among the long-time CNMI residents who failed to qualify for the Samoa Games. Aikawa holds Japanese and Canadian passports, but had represented the Commonwealth in the Palau Mini Games and in the Micronesian Games which Saipan hosted in 2006.

Next year, the CNMI will not be affected by the eligibility rules for the Mini Games as it will be skipping the multi-sports event in Rarotonga. But in 2011, long-time residents of the Commonwealth may miss the SPG in New Caledonia if the PGC Executive Board decides to keep the current eligibility rules.