Indo-Pacific broadcast WINS at Arafura Games

Chiqui Pablo is reporting on athletics for the first time.

Back home in the Philippines, her job is a volleyball analyst for ESPN, but this week she is reporting live on radio for the Australian Broadcasting Corporation at the Arafura Games.

Chiqui says she was nervous at first, but has learnt invaluable techniques in live crosses, even when put on the spot.

“If you don’t know how to answer a question, you say ‘I don’t have the details on that right now but this much I do know’,” Chiqui says.

“I also learnt that bravery and confidence are traits that should never stop growing.”

Joining her are Beatrice Go, also from the Philippines, and Elizabeth Osifelo from the Solomon Islands.

The three journalists are embedded with ABC Darwin covering the international sporting event as part of the Women in News and Sport (WINS) program.

Their content is also being broadcast by organisations back in their home countries.

WINS is a program run by ABC International Development, funded by the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade. It aims to increase opportunities for women in sports journalism and through those opportunities boost the number of stories about women in sport.

The women are being mentored by ABC sports broadcaster Shannon Byrne for the duration of the eight-day tournament.

After two days of intensive training, these ambassadors for women’s sport are now out in the field gaining on-the-spot experience at various games venues around the city.

Their job is to cover all sports from athletics and basketball to weightlifting and swimming, bringing the event to life for the Australian audiences.

Elizabeth hopes this experience at the Arafura Games will have an impact in her home country.

“It has helped paved the way for me as a female in sports reporting, now a female voice has been heard on the radio back home which is rare in the Solomon Islands,” she says.

The Arafura Games has returned to the Northern Territory after an eight-year hiatus.

The event referred to as the ‘friendly games’ has 40 countries competing mainly from the Indo-Pacific.

This mentoring activity is based on the previous WINS Gold Coast Commonwealth Games program in 2018 where female journalists were trained and embedded in the ABC’s broadcast coverage.

Shannon says it has been a great cultural exchange.

“It has been extremely rewarding and wonderful to meet and work with three very talented and enthusiastic journalists and show them how a sporting event is covered by us,” she says.

“The Games coverage would not have run so smoothly without their help and input and they have all got involved and taken their learnings from the workshops on board.”

Later this year, WINS will be running similar activities at the Pacific Games in Samoa and South East Asian Games in the Philippines.

ABC – Karen Shrosbery

ABC broadcasters Shannon Byrne and Charlie King are mentoring the group during the eight day event. ABC Karen Shrosbery