Governor Pulaalii Nikolao Pula delivered the first serve to open the Pacific Nations Cup at the tennis courts in Tafuna Monday morning. More than 65 tennis players, coaches, and officials from 11 countries are competing in the tournament, which will be held throughout this week.
Rev. Elder Ioane Evagelia gave the opening prayer and Florence Wasko, President of the American Samoa Tennis Association, which is hosting the Cup in collaboration with the Oceania Tennis Federation and International Tennis Federation, welcomed all the teams and sponsors.
Along with the Governor were Attorney General Gwen Tauiliili Langkilde, Director of the Department of Youth and Women Affairs Tapumanaia Galu Satele, Acting Director of Parks and Recreation, Tapusalaia Maneafaiga, and CEOs of the major sponsors for the games, including the Territorial Bank of American Samoa, GHC Reid, and BlueSky.
Participating teams are from the Cook Islands, Fiji, Nauru, Norfolk Islands, Solomon Islands, Tahiti, Tonga, Tuvalu, Vanuatu, Samoa, and American Samoa.
Governor Pulaalii said the Pacific Nations Cup is not just about winning medals, it’s about unity.
Play Audio governor-tennis
The defending champions are Tahiti in the Men’s Division and Fiji in the Women’s Division.
The public is invited to come out and enjoy some exciting tennis matches throughout the week.
The tournament wraps up on Saturday.
