4 Sep 2012

Sport: Fiji's Delana wins Paralympic gold

10:17 am on 4 September 2012

Fijian high-jumper Iliesa Delana has won the Pacific's first ever Paralympic gold medal in London.

The 27 year-old set a new regional record with a jump of 1.74m, to win Fiji's first ever Olympic or Paralympic medal and just the second Paralympic medal by a Pacific athlete.

Delana finished on the same height as India's Girisha Hosanagara Nagarajegowda and Poland's Lukasz Mamczarz but won gold by taking less jumps.

Samoa's Leitu Viliamu threw a season best effort but still finished well off the pace in the final of the women's shot put.

Meanwhile Vanuatu's Marcel Houssimoli finished seventh in the final of the men's 400m in a new season best time.

Vanuatu's Chef de Mission, Andrew Bynon, says it's been an amazing few days for the entire Pacific team.

"Everyone who's gone out has done a personal best or a season best. That's what you come here to do, you come here to do your best and that's what every athlete has done. There's a really good feeling in the team about how we're going and looking ahead - and on Thursday we've got Francis competing from PNG and we just hope that again he runs his best and perhaps we might see him up there as well."

Vanuatu's Chef de Mission.