By Robert Balajadia

The 2017 Inter-Pacific Spearfishing Competition wrapped up over the weekend with Tahiti finishing atop the Men’s and Women’s division, edging the pool of five other island competitors in New Caledonia, New Zealand, Hawaii, Australia and the host team Guam.

“Tahiti and New Caledonia are power houses in this competition in the Pacific. They have a lot of experience from the World Championships, and it was a very challenging event for everyone,” said James Borja, the event coordinator.

Spearfishing in Tahiti draws a lot of similarities to Guam, which played a key factor in their strong showing. Tahiti captured the gold medal in both the 1975 and 1999 South Pacific Games held in Guam, showing also their strength in survey of the land.

“It’s like their backyard here so they were very familiar with waters and reefs out here in Guam,” added Borja.

Division Points Men’s

1. Tahiti – Day 1: 4018.4 | Day 2: 3607.2 = 7625.6
2. New Caledonia – Day 1: 3164.2 | Day 2: 2998.8 = 6163
3. New Zealand – Day 1: 2916.8 | Day 2: 3425.4 = 6342.2
4. Guam – Day 1: 2334.4 | Day 2: 3160 = 5494.4
5. Australia – Day 1: 1613.6 | Day 2: 2073.4 = 3687
6. Hawaii – Day 1: 1368.8 | Day 2: 584.8 = 1953.6

Division Points Women’s

1. Tahiti – Day 1: 977 | Day 2: 520.4 = 1497.4
2. Australia – Day 1: 417.8 | Day 2: 623.8 = 1041.6
3. New Zealand – Day 1: 215.2 | Day 2: 211.2 = 426.4
4. Guam – Day 1: 205.8 | Day 2: 213 = 418.8

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