Sport: PNG embracing pressure ahead of home Pacific Games

11:30 am on 15 May 2015

Papua New Guinea is embracing the high expectations on its athletes to do well at the Pacific Games in Port Moresby.

PNG topped the medal count at the Pacific Mini Games two years ago and will have more than 600 athletes competing on home soil in July.

Team PNG Chef de Mission Richard Kassman admits their is a lot of pressure from the public to do well at the Games but says he and the team of athletes see that as a positive.

"Good pressure. Papua New Guinea topped the medal count when we last hosted the Games in 1991 and therefore there is a massive expectation that we will follow that. There is tremendous expectation and, on top of that, our government will have spent over 1.2 to 1.5 billion Kina on the facilities here so with that comes this overt expectation as well".

Richard Kassman says he expects Tahiti, New Caledonia and Fiji to be their biggest rivals in topping the medal tally.