Tri-athletes on the cycling sector of the sport that includes swimming and running.
By Staff Writer
“We are pleased to announce the formation of the TRI-SPORTS SAMOA ASSOCIATION (TSA). Newly registered at the Ministry of Commerce, Industry and Labor as an incorporated society, the purpose of the TSA is to promote the development of triathlon in Samoa, a sport that includes one or more disciplines of swimming, cycling and running.”
This was the offical statement from the newly established breakaway association of tri-athletes in the on going controversy that involves the Samoa Triathlon Federation.
The association press statement continued :
We are not new to triathlon though. Our Executive Board and the founding fifteen members, are also all members of the Samoa Triathlon Federation which was suspended from the Samoa Association of Sport (SASNOC) and referred to a national sports tribunal to resolve longstanding issues with former President Seti Afoa.
We do not know how long that will take, or when even a tribunal will be appointed?
At a mediation session with Mr Afoa held two weeks ago at MCIL, no resolution was reached.
Mr Afoa continues to refuse to hand over the STF bank account to the new Executive that was elected at the STF Special General Meeting on June 15th, or to even allow the STF Treasurer to be a signatory. He refuses to allow STF members to see the overdue audits from 2015 to 2019 – audits which the Treasurer was never involved in. Discrepancies in the audits for 2020 to 2022 have not been suitably answered by Mr Afoa. We are mindful also that STF is a defunct organisation, deregistered by MCIL since 2020, and so it should not legally even have a bank account. We cannot operate as a sports organisation like that.
We welcome the national sports tribunal whenever it does happen. But in the meantime, what about the athletes?
We continue to train, prepare for international competitions and also hold regular community events. All this requires money, and good financial accountability is essential to us. The 2023 STF membership fees that were collected by the Treasurer, have not been spent. They are being held in trust until such time that STF is functioning.
In the last month, we have fundraised $25,000 to take a team of 12 triathletes and 3 management/chaperones to compete in the Fiji Invitational Races. This will be the first time since triathlon was established in Samoa, that a National Squad will travel to represent our country. We are humbled and grateful for the generous donations of many family, friends, businesses, and supporters both here and overseas. Thank you for your trust and being willing to give cash for the athletes, understanding that we did not have a triathlon bank account.
This is a key reason why we have registered a new triathlon association, so we can operate with a bank account and within the framework of an incorporated society. Only then can we better organise as athletes, parents and coaches to develop triathlon in Samoa.
We love our sport and are excited to see the progress of all our athletes. We invite anyone interested in triathlon, to come try one of our community events that are free and open to all. Contact us through our Facebook page Triathlon Samoa for more information.