Asenate Manoa
Encyclopedia
Asenate Manoa is a Tuvalu
an athlete who represented Tuvalu at the 2008 Summer Olympics
. She was the first runner and first female representative of Tuvalu at the Olympic Games
.
After initially training on the runway of Funafuti International Airport
, Manoa trained in Suva
, Fiji
in preparation for the games. She was mentored by members of Fiji’s track team, and worked at the offices of the regional Olympic administrator, ONOC. She had never used starting blocks or run on a synthetic track before arriving in Beijing. Slight of figure, she weighs 101 lbs (46 kg).
She competed in the 100m sprint
. Her time of 14.05 was the slowest in her heat, but was a Tuvaluan national record.
The Guardian
described her as "impossibly tiny for an international sprinter", and noted that, in the Beijing National Stadium
, she was "running in front of an audience 10 times the size of her country's population".
Tuvalu
Tuvalu , formerly known as the Ellice Islands, is a Polynesian island nation located in the Pacific Ocean, midway between Hawaii and Australia. Its nearest neighbours are Kiribati, Nauru, Samoa and Fiji. It comprises four reef islands and five true atolls...
an athlete who represented Tuvalu at the 2008 Summer Olympics
Tuvalu at the 2008 Summer Olympics
Tuvalu made their first ever appearance in an Olympic Games when the country sent three athletes to the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing. Athletes from Tuvalu competed in two events....
. She was the first runner and first female representative of Tuvalu at the Olympic Games
Olympic Games
The Olympic Games is a major international event featuring summer and winter sports, in which thousands of athletes participate in a variety of competitions. The Olympic Games have come to be regarded as the world’s foremost sports competition where more than 200 nations participate...
.
After initially training on the runway of Funafuti International Airport
Funafuti International Airport
Funafuti International Airport is an airport located in Funafuti, capital of the island nation of Tuvalu.-History:Funafuti Airport was built by United States Navy Seabee construction battalions in 1943 during World War II. The military airfield included an airstrip, control tower, facilities and...
, Manoa trained in Suva
Suva
Suva features a tropical rainforest climate under the Koppen climate classification. The city sees a copious amount of precipitation during the course of the year. Suva averages 3,000 mm of precipitation annually with its driest month, July averaging 125 mm of rain per year. In fact,...
, Fiji
Fiji
Fiji , officially the Republic of Fiji , is an island nation in Melanesia in the South Pacific Ocean about northeast of New Zealand's North Island...
in preparation for the games. She was mentored by members of Fiji’s track team, and worked at the offices of the regional Olympic administrator, ONOC. She had never used starting blocks or run on a synthetic track before arriving in Beijing. Slight of figure, she weighs 101 lbs (46 kg).
She competed in the 100m sprint
Athletics at the 2008 Summer Olympics - Women's 100 metres
-Results:All times shown are in seconds. The following abbreviations are used:* Q denotes qualification by place* q denotes qualification by time* PB denotes personal best* SB denotes season best* NR denotes national record...
. Her time of 14.05 was the slowest in her heat, but was a Tuvaluan national record.
The Guardian
The Guardian
The Guardian, formerly known as The Manchester Guardian , is a British national daily newspaper in the Berliner format...
described her as "impossibly tiny for an international sprinter", and noted that, in the Beijing National Stadium
Beijing National Stadium
Beijing National Stadium, also known officially as the National Stadium, or colloquially as the Bird's Nest , is a stadium in Beijing, China. The stadium was designed for use throughout the 2008 Summer Olympics and Paralympics.-History:...
, she was "running in front of an audience 10 times the size of her country's population".