After going viral in Rio and racing down the slopes of Pyeongchang, Tongan athlete Pita Taufatofua has plans to make another big splash at the Tokyo Olympics.
The 34 year old first made global headlines with a shirtless entrance as Tonga's flagbearer at the 2016 Summer Games, a feat he repeated at the Winter Olympics in South Korea earlier this year.
Pita Taufatofua told Koro Vaka'uta that, after representing his country in taekwondo and cross-country skiing, he plans to take up another new sport in time for Tokyo 2020.
Pita Taufatofua leads the Tonga team into the stadium in Rio de Janiero.
Photo: Photosport
Transcript
PITA TAUFATOFUA: One of the biggest things I do is I set dreams which are impossible and then find a way to get there. On the 20th of August I will be releasing what that new sport will be and if and when I can achieve that then I will hopefully be the first male in history to do three completely different Olympic sports in three different arenas.
KORO VAKA'UTA: Any hints? Obviously you're going to do the announcement but is it something quite different from taekwondo and skiing?
PT: Yes, absolutely. For it to be three completely different (sports) it has to be in a different arena so what we're looking at is water.
KV: And you're hoping that this will again bring more - it's just about yourself, through all your work it's been about promoting Tonga as well isn't it?
PT: It's about promoting Tonga, it's about promoting the Pacific. We're a big part of the world - the overall area of the Pacific is larger and similar in size to the United States and hundreds and hundreds of different islands and we're the people that get impacted by everything first. I've got a good life - everything's going well for me - but that's of no importance unless I can share some of those things with other people and people who are following my journey, whether it be it through Instagram, Facebook or Twitter, showing them what they can do. Showing them that they can set these big dreams and if they get them: amazing and if they don't get them: amazing, and not to fear this idea of failure or not to fear even trying something.
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