[Published on Wednesday, 8 July, 2026]
BY RICHARD MENANOPO
Guadalcanal Province’s Ivan Tome captured the men’s under-54kg Taekwondo gold medal after defeating Honiara’s Marcus Jackson in the final at the National Aquatic Centre in Honiara on Tuesday.
The victory capped an impressive campaign for Tome, who advanced to the championship bout after overcoming Makira Province’s Junior Fred in the semi-final before producing a composed performance to claim the title.
Despite coming up against an opponent with national squad experience, Tome remained composed to secure the title and add another gold medal to Guadalcanal Province’s tally.
“I feel happy and proud of what I achieved,” Tome said shortly after the final.
He described the championship bout as his toughest contest of the day.
“My opponent has already been in the national squad, but I just wanted to stay calm and fight smoothly. My aim was simply to perform well and win,” he said.
The gold medallist credited years of preparation and the guidance of his coach for helping him reach the top of the podium.
“I have been preparing for this tournament for three to four years.
“I learned a lot from this tournament. At first, I was a little weak in some of the previous games I played, but our coach really supported me during training and leading up to this tournament. I was also a bit nervous because of the game I played yesterday, but overall, I learned a lot,” he said.
Coach Isaac Pat Myrie praised not only Tome’s achievement but also the performances of the entire Team Guadalcanal squad.
“I am really happy with the athletes’ performances, especially those who won medals, including our gold medallist Ivan.
“Even those who lost their matches performed well. I am really happy and satisfied with the overall performance,” he said.
Myrie said the coaching team knew Jackson’s fighting style before the final and adjusted their approach accordingly.
“We already knew his opponent and were familiar with his fighting style. My advice to Ivan was to use his technical skills to counter his opponent’s strongest attacks,” he explained.
The coach believes the young gold medallist has the potential to achieve even greater success if given more opportunities to train and compete.
“Ivan is a talented young athlete with great potential. If he is given more time to train and more opportunities to compete in tournaments, I believe he will become an even better athlete.”
Coach Isaac Pat Myrie said the team’s focus now shifts to developing young athletes like Tome for next year’s South Pacific Games and future international competitions.
“We are building young athletes like Ivan so they can earn places in the national squad and represent Solomon Islands at the South Pacific Games, Oceania championships and beyond,” he said.
The Taekwondo competition attracted almost a hundred people including athletes, coaches, officials and supporters to the National Aquatic Centre, creating one of the liveliest atmospheres of the Solomon Games.
Friends and family members packed the venue as loud cheers echoed around the arena throughout the afternoon, adding to the excitement of every bout contested on the mats.
Photo credit: Richard Menanopo
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