TEAM S.F.E.S.A TOP TEAM AT INTER-MINISTRY Paddling REGATTA
S.F.E.S.A Commissioner Afioga Tanuvasa Petone Mauga with the winning team together with Alo Paopao Academy.
Photo: Eyespy Radio
The (S.F.E.S.A) Samoa Fire & Emergency Services Authority has won the overall men's Division in the Inter-Ministry Paddling Regatta for 2022.
As a new team who have just entered a team for paddling , 6 members from the SFESA crew managed to paddleto the finish line in first place in the 250 metres Sprint finals.
S.F.E.S.A Commissioner Afioga Tanuvasa Petone Mauga acknowledged his team for a Job well done and he stated it was a great initiative for his department to take part in the inter ministry events as part of the Samoa energy week program.
He also acknowledged the support of Su’a Jay and Tasi Ah Fook together with Alo Paopao Academy in training their team for the event.
In an exclusive interview with the captain and leader of the SFESA crew Sola Malele , he stated that it has been a humbling experience for his team and their whole team at SFESA.
"It wasn't easy considering I only had one week of training. Literally one week of training and we were shocked by the fact we had potential to actually win" stated Sola.
He also highlighted the significance of their first time entering the competition and how it has shone light on watersports for S.F.E.S.A and its public servants.
" This has been a great opportunity for all of us here. I understand that one week of training was quite a challenging route for us to proceed with but we manage, " he told EyeSpy Radio.
Ulugia Jay Ah Fook of Alo Paopao expressed his heartfelt gratitude towards the S.F.E.S.A Team as they were trained under the Alo Paopao Academic.
''I'm very proud of my team and what they've accomplished , despite the short time period they had to train" he said during the formalities.
One of the Alo Paopao coaches who have also assisted with the teams training is Lucas Sooaemalelagi , he stated that watersports isn't an easy craft to master. He stated how proud he was of his team for coming through on top.
"They've exceeded my expectations and I'm very proud of them," Lucas mentioned.
A shield was presented to the S.F.E.S.A Skipper Sola for the prestigious achievement they have amounted to and for representing F.E.S.A
Despite the small duration of time the team was able to train, they came out as winners and shocked the other Ministries who have participated in previous tournaments.
The S.F.E.S.A is no stranger to being in water as they undergo a lot of water rescue missions and also training. These trainings were conducted to shine light on the firefighters when they are faced with water situations
The competition kicked off at the Mulinuu Harbour with 10 Government Ministry teams going head to head to win this year's title . Some of the teams that participated were M.N.R.E , M.P.E, M.O.F , E.P.C ,S.W.A , M.F.A.T, M.A.F, P.S.C and S.R.O.S.
The team is now looking forward to recruiting more members and those who'll be interested in paddling and participating in the event. They look forward to paddling as part of their training and also a physical health programme.