A big badminton welcome to Iosefo Rakesa from Fiji – competing in his first ever para-badminton tournament!
Training for badminton in Fiji would be an ‘interesting’ experience for most seasoned players. The population of the beautiful island typically enjoys playing badminton outdoors, which means playing in difficult windy conditions.
Iosefo had only taken up badminton three months ago, having previously competed in javelin and shotput. The transferrable skills have been extremely beneficial and the athlete has travelled to Geelong, Victoria to compete in this year’s VICTOR Oceania Para-Badminton Championships 2018.
“It’s my first time at a tournament and it’s been really good. My first sports events were javelin and shot put, but I really like badminton, it’s very different! I play outdoors in Fiji, but it is very hard as we often play outside with the strong winds and it can be hard to hit, but we have to try and battle against it.” – says Iosefo.
It’s been a fantastic opportunity for Iosefo, having played against the experienced athletes from Australia – Kobie Donovan and Luke Missen. The Fijian athlete has finished the competition with a bronze medal and with the athleticism and enthusiasm that he has bought to the game at this early stage of his career, we are excited to see what the future holds for him.
