Team Fiji will travel to Australia later this month for the 2026 Oceania Taekwondo Games, with a squad led by Olympian Lolohea Naitasi and a mix of experienced campaigners and debutants aiming to secure valuable World Taekwondo ranking points. The two-day tournament runs on March 28 and 29 at the Whitlam Leisure Centre in New South Wales, where Fiji’s fighters will face rivals from across the region.
Among the leaders of the 2026 team are Naitasi, New Zealand–based Nipesh Prakash, and experienced competitor Aanvi Kumar. Their international exposure and leadership are expected to anchor the team as younger members step onto the regional stage. Prakash will join the main group in Australia a day after the rest of the squad arrive, linking up with teammates on March 27.
Five junior athletes will make their competitive debuts at a World Ranking event: Nirav Prakash, Aarush Kumar, Immanuel Krishna, Vivaan Singh and Bhavish Nand. For these youngsters, the Oceania Games offer a first opportunity to earn international points and experience against higher-level opponents — a significant milestone for Fiji’s development pathway in taekwondo.
Preparations include an extended build-up for the junior contingent. Team One — composed of the junior athletes under national coach Neelu Nand — departs Fiji early to attend the Oceania World Taekwondo Olympic Solidarity Camp in New South Wales from March 17 to 26. The camp is designed to sharpen technical skills, expose the juniors to regional coaching methods and acclimatise them ahead of competition. The rest of the national squad will arrive in Australia on March 26 to complete the final phase of the team’s preparations.
The Oceania Taekwondo Games sit on the World Taekwondo ranking calendar, making this tournament important not only for medals but for athletes’ seeding and international standings. With ranking points on offer, performances in Sydney can influence future draws and qualification pathways for larger international events, raising the stakes for both seasoned fighters and first-time entrants.
This latest deployment highlights Fiji’s current strategy of blending seasoned athletes with emerging talent and investing in targeted regional training ahead of major events. With the tournament less than two weeks away and the Olympic Solidarity camp under way for the juniors, Team Fiji will be aiming to convert the preparatory work into strong results on March 28 and 29 and further raise the nation’s profile in Oceania taekwondo.
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