Glasgow, July 29 (IANS) Jasmine Daunakamakama had already broken new ground at Glasgow 2026 as the first-ever Fijian woman to compete in Boxing at the Commonwealth Games 2026, making an appearance in the Women’s 57kg.
Now, after her victory over Keshani Hansika (SRI) in the Women’s 57kg quarterfinal earlier on Wednesday, she’s only gone and become the first woman from her nation to secure a Boxing medal in the Commonwealth Games, too.
She attributes her success to her culture and the spiritual belief in ‘Mana’, shared across Melanesian and Polynesian communities.
“I believe there’s two sides of us,” Daunakamakama said. “There’s an internal war inside all of us where we’re constantly fighting between the ego and our true self, which is the spirit, and so, the mana is the will to overcome the fears because the fears are what’s not real.”
She’ll be hoping to channel this in her next bout, against defending champion Michaela Walsh (NIR) on Thursday. Even if Daunakamakama loses, bronze is guaranteed.
Uganda women make waves in 3×3 basketball
Uganda are proving to be the story of the Women’s 3×3 Basketball, after their stunning 21-9 upset of New Zealand in the semifinals earlier today guaranteed at least silver on their Commonwealth Games debut. Uganda will meet 2022 bronze medallists Australia in the last of today’s gold-medal matches, starting at 20:00 BST.
“We brought our A-game to the court today,” said Jane Asinde (pictured), who scored eight of her side’s points.
“We have families back home who are praying on their knees. We’ve had a lot of encouraging messages – they believe in us, and they know we could do this against experienced, great players. The energy back home is all the way up there.”
American hand in Scotland win
America-born Scotland star Skyler White on Wednesday helped the Men’s team to a first-ever Commonwealth medal in 3×3 Basketball.
It’s a first Scotland medal on a basketball court for the Men at the 3×3. On home soil, they beat New Zealand 18-16 to bag a brilliant bronze. Four years after a devastating fourth place at Birmingham 2022, Fraser Malcolm has returned here to secure the medal he so craved.
“The feeling, the immense pride that I have to put on this jersey and play in front of these fans and win them some hardware,” White said. “No matter what colour it is, it’s something I would cherish and carry with me for the rest of my life.”
White shares a name with an infamous Breaking Bad main character, but he promises he’s much nicer. “I get that a lot, but it’s just purely coincidental,” Skyler said. “If you look up my name on Twitter, I get a lot of hate because I don’t think people like her very much, but I promise I’m not like her!”
–IANS
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