Sport in Kiribati
Kiribati is a relatively young nation which only became an independent state in 1979, and became a member of the United Nations in 1999. As far as sports are concerned, as a former territory of the United Kingdom, a large portion of the Kiribati population enjoys football and their national football team is part of the Oceania Football Confederation. As a relatively young nation, they just have not yet made any kind of footprint on the international football stage.
The biggest participation sport in Kiribati is volleyball, played in almost every village on every island in the country. The sport is accessable to everyone. All they need is ball and a net. If they don't have a proper net they stretch a rope between two trees and scratch rough markings the court underneath it. Any sporting future success may come in the form of beach volleyball.
The people of Kiribati love football, and play a lot of volleyball, but the country logged its first international win with a completely different sport, weightlifting. Kiribati became a member of the Commonwealth Games in 1998 and the Olympic Games in 2004. In their first international event, Kiribati sent two athletes for weightlifting to the Commonwealth Games in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia but their first win did not come until 2014 when David Katoatau took the gold in Glasgow, Scotland in the 105kg category. Kiribati also compete in the Pacific Games.
a volleyball game in KiribatiBelow are details of sports, sporting events and sports people related to Kiribati. Is there something missing? If you know of something that should be listed here, please let us know.
Popular sports of Kiribati
- Football (Soccer), volleyball, weightlifting, table tennis, athletics, basketball, and tennis.
Kiribati Sporting Success
- Kiribati won its first-ever Commonwealth Games medal in 2014 in Glasgow when weightlifter David Katoatau won gold.
Great athletes from Kiribati
- David Katoatau
Kiribati Sports trivia
- Kiribati first competed at the Olympic Games in 2004, and sent three participants. During the opening ceremony, the country's name was famously mispronounced by officials in all three languages.
- Kiribati first sent a team to the Commonwealth Games in Melbourne, 2006.
Kiribati at major events
Past sporting events hosted in Kiribati
Upcoming sporting events in Kiribati
Annual sporting events held in Kiribati
- Kiribati National Championship (football/soccer)
Sporting Facilities in Kiribati
- Bairiki National Stadium, Bairiki
- Betio Soccer Field
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