History was created last weekend for the Fiji Karate Federation (F K F ) when all the Instructors at member Dojos were invited to participate in the Oceania Sports Education Program (OSEP).

T he program is an initiative of the Australian Sports Commission, Olympic Sports Federations of Oceania (OSFO) and the Oceania National Olympic Committees (ON OC), and com prises 8 modules.

For Pacific Island sporting federations, the development and delivery of a program for Coaches at ”grass roots‘ is very expensive, so by working with ONOC, the FKF was able to organise for member Instructors to attend the Course on Saturday, 09 January, with the objective of seeing Fiji‘s first ever locally accredited Coaches in Karate.

A total of 12 Instructors participated, comprising 11 m ales and a female, and they represented the 5 Dojos currently affiliated to the FKF. Presented by Brian Minikin, the Oceania Sport Development Manager, this first module focused on generic coaching practices, with examples of Karate specific instructions woven into the module‘s content.

Chairman of the Technical Committee, Netani Koto, advised that all who attended ”gained a lot from it‘ and the individual‘s and FKF ‘s objectives have been met. Lemeki Lenoa, National Coach, appreciated the commitment of all who attended , adding that it reflected their desire to improve their skills to become better Instructors.

Opportunities are there to undertake the remainder of the modules, depending on how much further each Instructor wishes to develop them selves.

T he F K F acknowledges the support of Brian Minikin and Sainimili Talatoka of ONOC in co¬ordinating this program for the Instructors.

Mrs Lenoa President OKF

The OKF President and WKF Executive Committee member, Mrs. Makarita Lenoa, has been selected as a finalist for the Commonwealth Sports Awards.

The Fiji Association of Sports & National Olympic Committee nominated Mrs. Lenoa as a candidate for the category ‘Sports Administrator of the Year’ and on the event of her selection as a finalist will be travelling to Leeds, England, to attend the Awards Dinner on the 24^th October.

The WKF Executive Committee officially congratulated Mrs. Lenoa for the award nomination which is in recognition of her work in sport.

High distinction for Mrs. Lenoa, WKF Executive Committee member and President of Oceania Karate Federation

Late last year, the Women in Sport (WIS) Committee in  Fiji, unanimously agreed that Mrs. Makarita Lenoa, the FKF President, be nominated for the ‘IOC Women in Sport Trophy’ which is held every year.

The IOC representative body in Fiji, FASANOC, held a strategic workshop at the weekend and we are delighted to announce that a presentation was made, during a special dinner on Saturday night, by Mr. Vidhya Lakhan, the President of FASANOC, on behalf of the International Olympic Committee. Mrs. Lenoa was awarded ‘The Women in Sport Achievement Diploma signed by the President of IOC Dr Jacques Rogge; in recognition of her outstanding contribution in promoting the development and participation of women and girls in sport in Fiji and in the Oceania Region’.

It was also acknowledged that she received the Award despite Karate being a non-Olympic sport.

Kevin Gosper, Mrs Lenoa & Friends at FASANOC Dinner

The FASANOC (Fiji Association of Sports and National Olympic Committee) and Fiji Women in Sports hosted a dinner or delegates from the Oceania region attending the ONOC (Oceania National Olympic Committee) Secretary General’s meeting.

Mr Kevin Gosper, President of Oceania National Olympic Committee and a Vice President of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) attended the dinner.

Mr Gosper has been very supportive on women representation on NOCs.

Late 2007, the Women in Sport (WIS) Committee in  Fiji, unanimously agreed that Mrs. Makarita Lenoa, the Fiji Karate Federation and the Oceania Karate Federation President, be nominated for the ‘IOC Women in Sport Trophy’ which is held every year.

It was also acknowledged that she received the Award despite Karate being a non-Olympic sport.

John was the previous head of the Oceania Karate Federation, Australian Karate Federation and head of style of  Seikukan in Australia. Additional  details  on Sensei Halpin

DATE:  14^th Oceania Karate Championships – Friday 17^th to Sunday 19^th September 2010

VENUE:  AS DRAGON, Papeete, Tahiti

HOSTED BY:  Tahitian Karate and Related Martial Arts Federation

The Oceania Karate Federation is a member of the World Karate Federation (W.K.F.).The W.K.F. has full Olympic recognition and conducts the official Senior and Junior/Cadet World Championships on alternate years