A Papua New Guinean teenager who took up para badminton less than a year ago has returned home a silver medallist, from the VICTOR Oceania Para Badminton Championships in Ballarat, Victoria, Australia.
David Joe Kaniku, who is 17 and still at school, began playing para badminton nine months ago through the Shuttle Time inclusive badminton program, which is delivered by Badminton Papua New Guinea in partnership with Badminton Oceania, and funded by the Australian Government through the Pacific Sports Partnerships.
The program creates opportunities for people of all abilities to participate in badminton, works to change perceptions of disability, and includes a partnership with the sport of gymnastics, via PNG Gymnastics Federation, Gymnastics Australia and Oceania Gymnastics Union, to expand activities and accessibility for participants.
Kaniku was one of four PNG players selected to be part of the country’s first international badminton team. His teammates Jerome Bunge, Danny Ten and Nelly Ruth Leva also discovered the sport through the Shuttle Time program. The quartet travelled to the VICTOR Oceania Para Badminton Championships in February, and returned with two silver and two bronze medals between them. The PNG team’s travel to Australia was supported by the Australian High Commission in Papua New Guinea and the Australian Government’s PacificAus Sports program.
“The flow-on effect of the team’s success in Ballarat is already having a positive effect on our inclusive program in PNG,” Karo said. “Our Para athletes are maintaining the excitement from the tournament and leading our sessions back here in Port Moresby for participants of all ages and abilities. This has been an awesome opportunity to create new Para athlete role models here, and put PNG on the map in badminton.”
