Tupou Neiufi

Started: She began swimming at age 10 in Auckland, New Zealand, and began competing at age 11. (Athlete, 12 Sep 2019; Tagata Pasifika YouTube channel, 03 Nov 2017; stuff.co.nz, 15 Aug 2016) Reason: "I wanted to play netball as a child, but after I had difficulty keeping up with the other girls, my physio suggested I try swimming. I was nervous after my first lesson but I soon fell in love with the sport. I enjoy the freedom in the water. Plus, I like meeting new people and travelling." (Athlete, 12 Sep 2019; stuff.co.nz, 15 Aug 2016; truthsshewrote.com, 2016; acc.co.nz, 16 Feb 2015) Ambition: To compete at the 2024 Paralympic Games in Paris. (countiessportshub.co.nz, 03 Aug 2023) Awards: She was named Para Swimmer of the Year for 2021 at the Swimming New Zealand Awards. (swimmingnz.org, 09 Sep 2022) In 2017 she won the Pacific Health and Wellbeing Award at the SunPix Pacific Peoples Awards in Auckland, New Zealand. She also received the 2017 Tongan Youth Excellence Award in the Senior Athlete category. (pasifikafutures.co.nz, 27 Nov 2017; Facebook page, 29 Mar 2017; tonganyouth.org.nz, 29 Mar 2017) Additional Info: RIO REPLACEMENT After initially being named as a reserve for the 2016 Paralympic Games in Rio de Janeiro, she was selected in August 2016 after Bryall McPherson had to withdraw through injury. "After the squad was named in May [2016], I knew I had to pick myself back up and keep going because there was always a chance [something] will just pop up and you have to be prepared for it." (stuff.co.nz, 15 Aug 2016; paralympics.org.nz, 09 Aug 2016) LEAVING SCHOOL In 2018 she decided to leave her final year of school to focus on swimming. "[2019] was supposed to be my last year [of school], but after the [2018] Commonwealth Games, I decided to put school aside. The good thing with school is that you can always come back to it later on in life - I had a talk with my parents and explained to them that [school] just wasn't working for me - especially with all the travelling, assignments and deadlines. Once I'm done with swimming, then I can always turn back to school and decide where to go from there." (stuff.co.nz, 16 Sep 2019; tearaway.co.nz, 26 Aug 2019)