Samoa has a gold medal at the Glasgow Commonwealth Games after 18-year-old weightlifter Seine Stowers won the women’s 77kg category overnight.
She lifted a Games record 107kg in the snatch, and 130kg in the clean-and-jerk, for a Games record total of 237.
The silver medal went to England’s Isabella Brown, who lifted a total of 229 kg, and bronze went to Wales’ Laura Hughes, with a total lift of 224kg.
It is Samoa’s second medal of the Glasgow Games, with a silver, also in weightliting, to John Tafi earlier in the week.
Another Samoan weightlifter, Emmanuel Shalom Palota Ulimasao, came sixth in the men’s 94kg category.
Compatriot, 17-year-old Sefulu Seuao was competing in the women’s 86kg on Thursday morning. After the snatch, she was in seventh place with a lift of 96kg. She finished sixth with a total lift of 219kg.
In other results overnight, a number of Pacific island athletes had a season’s best performance in the track and field.
Fiji’s Heleina Valetta Young ran an equal season’s best of 24.45 seconds in the women’s 200m heats but did not qualify – 23.88 was the slowest qualification time.
Tuvalu’s Vaioleta Luka also ran a season’s best in the event, but she was disqualified so the time is not officially recorded.
Papua New Guinea’s Isila Apkup ran a time of 25.88 for sixth in her heat.
In the men’s mile, there were season’s best times run by Fiji’s Yeshnil Karan (4:12:28) and PNG’s Jiuteis Robinson (4:19:14) but they were not quick enough to progress.
Two PNG runners featured in the men’s 400m hurdles heats, Daniel Baul and William Camilus Peka. They both ran season’s bests of 52.83 and 54.16 seconds respectively, but they did not progress.
Nauru’s Jonathan-Deiwea Detageouwa and Tonga’s Penisimani Taeiloa qualified for the final of the men’s shotput, to be held Friday morning.
Niue’s Caleb Misipeka threw a personal best of 11.10 metres but did not make the cut.
Tonga’s Ata Maama Tu’utafaiva and Samoa’s Nu’u Tuilefano were featuring in the women’s shotput on Thursday morning, finishing 8th and 11th respectively in the 11-strong field.
In the boxing ring, Fiji’s Jasmine Daunakamakama beat Sri Lanka’s Keshani Hansika in the women’s 57kg quarterfinals. Daunakamakama is now guaranteed a medal as there is no bronze medal fight in boxing – once a boxer is beaten, they cannot fight again, so the losing semifinalists both get bronze.
In the men’s 90+kg, Samoa’s Michael Seko lost his quarterfinal to India’s Narender Narender; while in the men’s 70kg, Samoa’s Marion Ah Tong was beaten by Scotland’s Sonny Kerr.
There were no wins for Pacific lawn bowlers overnight Wednesday, but on Thursday morning Norfolk Island’s Shae Wilson had a win over Namibia’s Diana Viljoen in the women’s singles.
And in the netball, there was another heavy defeat for the Tonga Tala – beaten 94-31 by England.
