Pacific Mini Games


The Pacific Mini Games is a multi-sport event contested by countries and territories located in Oceania. It was known as the South Pacific Mini Games prior to 2009. The event has been held every four years since the inaugural games in Honiara, Solomon Islands in 1981. It is called the 'Mini' games because it is a scaled-down version of the main Pacific Games and is similarly rotated on a four-year basis in the intervening years between the main games.

Concept

Following the success of the main Pacific Games, the Pacific Games council decided to create a smaller version of the games to enable smaller nations and territories to host events and compete against each other. From this came the Pacific Mini Games.

Pacific Games Council

The governing body for the mini games is the Pacific Games Council. Much like the main games, the Games council flag is presented to the host nation of the next mini games at the end of every games. As of 2017, the council has 22 member nations.
Two other nations, Australia and New Zealand, are not members of the council but are invited as observers to the council's general assembly. These nations participated at the mini games in 2017 and made their main games debut in 2015.

Editions

YearGamesHostDatesAthletesNationsSportsTop nation
1981I Honiara, 7–19 July600155
1985II Rarotonga, 31 July – 9 August700156
1989III Nukuʻalofa, Tonga22 August – 1 September832166
1993IV Port Vila, Vanuatu9–16 December156
1997V Pago Pago, 11–22 August1,7981911
2001VI Kingston, 3–14 December1810
2005VII Koror, Palau25 July – 4 August2012
2009VIII Rarotonga, 21 September – 2 October2115
2013IX Mata Utu, 2–12 September228
2017X Port Vila, Vanuatu4–15 December2,0002314
2021XI Saipan, TBDTBD246
2025XII Koror, PalauTBDTBD

As with the main games, the cost of providing the necessary facilities and infrastructure is a concern to the region's smaller nations. In preparation for the 2009 Games in Rarotonga, despite having hosted the games previously, the local government considered diverting funds from a highway project, and secured a loan for US$10 million from the Chinese government to finance the building of a stadium.

Sports

There are 37 sports approved by the Pacific Games Council as of December 2017. Unlike the main games, the Pacific Mini Games does not have a compulsory sports list. However, 50 percent of the sports selected for a games must be from the compulsory sports list of the Pacific Games Council.
After the 2017 games, 30 of the 37 sports have been included at the mini games since the inaugural edition in 1981.
Listed are sports already contested at the Pacific Mini Games.
SportContestedYears
Archery2 times2001, 2017
AthleticsAll1981–present
BadmintonFuture2021
BaseballOnce2005
Basketball3 times1997, 2005, 2017
BodybuildingOnce2001
Boxing6 times1981, 1989–1997, 2009, 2017
Football3 times1981, 1993, 2017
Golf7 times1985–2001, 2009–present
JudoOnce2017
KarateOnce2017
Lawn bowls3 times1985, 2001, 2009
Netball8 times1981–2001, 2009, 2017
Outrigger canoeing3 times2005–2013
PowerliftingOnce1997
Rugby 7s4 times1997, 2009–2017
Sailing3 times1997, 2009−2013
ShootingOnce2001
SoftballOnce2005
Squash2 times2001, 2009
SwimmingOnce2005
Table tennis3 times2005-09, 2017
TaekwondoOnce2013
Tennis9 times1981–2009, 2017–present
Touch rugbyOnce2009
Triathlon3 times2001–2009
Volleyball and
Beach volleyball		2 times and
3 times 		1997, 2013 and
2005, 2013–present
Weightlifting6 times1989, 1997, 2005–present
WrestlingOnce2005

Former sports

Both disciplines have been replaced by other versions of the sports. Rugby 15s, and Rugby league 7s.
SportContestedYears
Rugby 15sOnce1985
Rugby league 7sOnce2009

All-time medal table

The all-time medal tally shows the total medals won by a Pacific Games Association from 1981 to 2017.