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Pago Pago – American Samoa
Four swimmers taking part in the Faagatama i Le Tai to celebrate the 25th anniversary of Bluesky Telephone Company have been disqualified for not following the rules of the race.
They include Manulele Tausala from Nu’uuli village, Fealofani Samoa from Fagasa village and Paepaeulupo’o from Aua village.
The decision was made by the Bluesky committee, which oversees the match, after reviewing images captured by the cameras.
At the time of the decision by the Blue Sky Committee, the winner was awarded to Matasawa from Manuatale, whose name is now written into the history of American Samoa, with this being their first victory in Fagata Maolete. In addition, they received a prize of US$10,000.
Aeto from Pago Pago village won second place and received a cash prize of $8,000. Lupelele from Ilili village won third place and received a prize of $6,000. Fourth place went to Iseulaolemoana from Fagatogo village, who received a prize of $4,000.
Although nine crews were expected to take part in this year’s second edition of the Blue Sky Regatta, only eight boats were able to compete following training sessions in the Wattiya village of Le Fua’o last Wednesday before the race on Thursday.
Like previous rowing competitions, this one also faced problems, from the beginning of filming to the end.
Due to the adverse weather conditions and especially for the safety of each crew member, they were released back to the coast of Fagatogo at the start of the race. Although the race was scheduled to start at 7:30 that morning, it was already 8:05 when the starting gun sounded.
This was emphasised at a meeting held the day before the tournament, attended by the leader captains and the committee that would run the tournament, and the tournament did not start until everyone was lined up in their set positions and ready to go.
At the start of the race, Manulele Lowrider, Fealofani Samoa and Paepaeulupo’o took the lead, followed by Eagle from Pago Pago, the second sa from Nu’uli Village, Lupelele from Ilili, Iseulaolemoana from Fagatogo and Matasaua from Manu’a.
When people from Nuuuli, Fagasa and Aua arrived at the main government port of Fagatogo, it could be seen that Fealofani was leading with 12 seats, followed by Eagle, Lupelele and Matasaua, but they were still strongly in favor of Vulture and Iseiula.
The race continued, with the 12-seater Fealofani in the lead, Manulele Lowrider and Paepaeulupoo continuing to fight. The race was about to come to calm waters, where boats could easily slip.
The Lowrider of Nu’uuli could be seen beginning to slide about 2 to 3 seats out in front of the village of Paepaeulupo’o, but it did not give up the oars pulling the crew from Aua.
But by this time, the Samoa Fealofani had just reached the Rainmaker’s end, where the sea was very rough, and their situation began to deteriorate. There, Nu’uuli found his opportunity and began to move away from Paepaeulupoo and pursue Fealofani.
When the Filofani and Papayurup met, an argument broke out between the two crews and another question arose, where does love come from? The police and the marine patrol immediately rushed to rescue the crew.
When this problem arises, Nu’uli’s Sa has the opportunity to go to Tiji. Closely followed by Matasaua mai Manua who always comes from behind.
However, in a decision announced following a review and investigation, the Blue Sky Committee confirmed the disqualification of Manulele Lowrider as well as Fealofani Samoa, Paepaeulupoo and Manulele Tausala 2 for not complying with the rules of the race.
As announced in a public statement by the Blue Sky Dragon Boat Race management and board of directors, it is said that it was not easy to make the final decision based on the situation of this year’s competition.
However, this is a decision that the Joint Competition Committee and the captains of the teams can agree on.
We would like to express our gratitude and congratulations to all the participating communities and team captains for their support of this decision.
Many netizens left messages online to express their support and approval for the decision. Some expressed their gratitude to the organizing committee because this difficult and honest decision was made with high expectations, which will become a permanent model for the fourth time to hold other competitions in the future.
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