Papua New Guinea sprint queen Toea Wisil and Samoan swimmer Brandon Schuster were awarded the Oceania regions Best Female and Best Male athletes at the ANOC (Association of National Olympic Committees) 2019 Awards held at Katara Hall, Doha, Qatar this evening.

The ANOC Awards were created in order to recognise the achievements of the National Olympic Committees and their athletes as well as distinguished members of the Olympic Family. 

The awards presented each year vary depending on the sporting events that have taken place that year and are decided by the ANOC jury.

Toea Wisil, dubbed the Pacific sprint queen is a former Olympian who completed an historic Triple Gold in 2019 Pacific Games in the 100M, 200M, and 400M, following Noumea 2011 and Port Moresby 2015.

“There’s a sense of overwhelming pride to be recognised as the Best Female Athlete of the Pacific Games. I competed in my first Pacific Games in 2007, and to still represent Papua New Guinea and win at a high-level 12 years later is a privilege. 

I would like to thank ANOC for this award, and for the bringing together so many inspiring people,” the elated Wisil told guests at the awards this evening.

Brandon Schuster is a 2016 Rio Olympian who holds various Samoan National record in swimming and won two gold medals at the 2019 Pacific Games in Samoa.

“Being a member of the most successful Samoan swimming team at the Pacific Games is one of the crowning achievements of my career, and for me to contribute 5 medals while the games were hosted in my home country makes it that much more special. 

I would like to thank ANOC for gifting me the Best Male Athlete of the Pacific Games award, an honor that goes beyond me and is for the thousands of people from all over the country,” Schuster said at the Awards Ceremony this evening.

Held each year, the event is an opportunity for the world’s NOCs come together in a relaxed and entertaining environment and enjoy an evening celebrating sport.

Representatives from 204 NOCs and stakeholders throughout the Olympic Movement attended the event, which was truly a global celebration of sport. 

The awards ceremony was broadcast live in Qatar by Al Kass, with highlights distributed to broadcasters all around the world. The event was also streamed live on the ANOC YouTube Channel, enabling the entire sporting world to enjoy the breath-taking combination of sport and culture on show.