David Katoatau
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David Katoatau (born 17 July 1984) is an I-Kiribati weightlifter who received international press attention due to dance routines he performed following his lifts at the
2016 Summer Olympics The 2016 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXXI Olympiad () and officially branded as Rio 2016, were an international multi-sport event held from 5 to 21 August 2016 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, with preliminary events i ...
, in order to bring attention to the impact of climate change on Kiribati.


Career

In 2007, Katoatau appeared at the 2007 World Weightlifting Championships in
Chiang Mai Chiang Mai, sometimes written as Chiengmai or Chiangmai, is the largest city in northern Thailand, the capital of Chiang Mai province and the List of municipalities in Thailand#Largest cities by urban population, second largest city in Thailan ...
,
Thailand Thailand, officially the Kingdom of Thailand and historically known as Siam (the official name until 1939), is a country in Southeast Asia on the Mainland Southeast Asia, Indochinese Peninsula. With a population of almost 66 million, it spa ...
, where he ranked 37th in the 85 kg with a total lift of 281 kg; as well as at the 2008 Oceania Weightlifting Championships in
Auckland Auckland ( ; ) is a large metropolitan city in the North Island of New Zealand. It has an urban population of about It is located in the greater Auckland Region, the area governed by Auckland Council, which includes outlying rural areas and ...
, New Zealand, where he ranked 4th with a total of 292 kg. Katoatau represented
Kiribati Kiribati, officially the Republic of Kiribati, is an island country in the Micronesia subregion of Oceania in the central Pacific Ocean. Its permanent population is over 119,000 as of the 2020 census, and more than half live on Tarawa. The st ...
in
weightlifting Weightlifting or weight lifting generally refers to physical exercises and sports in which people lift weights, often in the form of dumbbells, barbells or machines. People engage in weightlifting for a variety of different reasons. These can ...
at the
2008 Summer Olympics The 2008 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXIX Olympiad () and officially branded as Beijing 2008 (), were an international multisport event held from 8 to 24 August 2008, in Beijing, China. A total of 10,942 athletes fro ...
in
Beijing Beijing, Chinese postal romanization, previously romanized as Peking, is the capital city of China. With more than 22 million residents, it is the world's List of national capitals by population, most populous national capital city as well as ...
, China, where he also served as the national flag bearer at the opening ceremony. He ultimately ranked 15th in the 85 kg category, with a total of 313 kg. In 2012, Katoatau became the first I-Kiribati sportsperson to qualify on merit for the
Olympic Games The modern Olympic Games (Olympics; ) are the world's preeminent international Olympic sports, sporting events. They feature summer and winter sports competitions in which thousands of athletes from around the world participate in a Multi-s ...
, rather than through receiving a wildcard invitation, when he competed at the 94 kg event at the
2012 Summer Olympics The 2012 Summer Olympics, officially the Games of the XXX Olympiad and also known as London 2012, were an international multi-sport event held from 27 July to 12 August 2012 in London, England, United Kingdom. The first event, the ...
in
London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...
, United Kingdom. He finished 17th, with a total lift of 325 kg, and again served as Kiribati's flagbearer. At the
2014 Commonwealth Games The 2014 Commonwealth Games (), officially known as the XX Commonwealth Games and commonly known as Glasgow 2014 (; ), were an international multi-sport event celebrated in the tradition of the Commonwealth Games as governed by the Commonwea ...
in
Glasgow Glasgow is the Cities of Scotland, most populous city in Scotland, located on the banks of the River Clyde in Strathclyde, west central Scotland. It is the List of cities in the United Kingdom, third-most-populous city in the United Kingdom ...
, United Kingdom, Katoatau won gold in the 105 kg group A, marking the first ever Commonwealth Games medal for Kiribati. In 2016, Katoatau gained international press attention for dance routines he performed after completing clean and jerk lifts at the
Summer Olympics The Summer Olympic Games, also known as the Summer Olympics or the Games of the Olympiad, is a major international multi-sport event normally held once every four years. The inaugural Games took place in 1896 in Athens, then part of the King ...
in
Rio de Janeiro Rio de Janeiro, or simply Rio, is the capital of the Rio de Janeiro (state), state of Rio de Janeiro. It is the List of cities in Brazil by population, second-most-populous city in Brazil (after São Paulo) and the Largest cities in the America ...
, Brazil, which he stated he did in order to raise awareness of global warming in Kiribati.


Personal life and activism

Katoatau was born in Nonouti, Kiribati, and grew up in
Nauru Nauru, officially the Republic of Nauru, formerly known as Pleasant Island, is an island country and microstate in the South Pacific Ocean. It lies within the Micronesia subregion of Oceania, with its nearest neighbour being Banaba (part of ...
, where his father worked in the phosphate industry. When he was 16, he moved to
Apia Apia () is the Capital (political), capital and largest city of Samoa. It is located on the central north coast of Upolu, Samoa's second-largest island. Apia falls within the political district (''itūmālō'') of Tuamasaga. The Apia Urban A ...
,
Samoa Samoa, officially the Independent State of Samoa and known until 1997 as Western Samoa, is an island country in Polynesia, part of Oceania, in the South Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main islands (Savai'i and Upolu), two smaller, inhabited ...
, to train at the Oceania Weightlifting Institute, due in part of the lack of appropriate training facilities in Kiribati. As of 2016, Katoatau lived in
Nouméa Nouméa () is the capital and largest city of the French Sui generis collectivity, special collectivity of New Caledonia and is also the largest Francophone city in Oceania. It is situated on a peninsula in the south of New Caledonia's main i ...
,
New Caledonia New Caledonia ( ; ) is a group of islands in the southwest Pacific Ocean, southwest of Vanuatu and east of Australia. Located from Metropolitan France, it forms a Overseas France#Sui generis collectivity, ''sui generis'' collectivity of t ...
, where the Institute is now based Katoatau is a climate activist, and has called for international action to prevent Kiribati from "disappearing" due to rising sea levels. In 2015, Katoatau's family home in Buota was destroyed by rising tides; at 2014 Commonwealth Games, Katoatau and his then-coach Paul Coffa had written an open letter raising attention to the issue of homes being lost to rising sea levels in Kiribati. Katoatau believes that Kiribati lacks the resources to fight climate change and needs the support of the international community. Katoatau has cited
Marcus Stephen Marcus Ajemada Stephen (born 1 October 1969) is a Nauruan politician and former sportsperson who previously was a member of the Cabinet of Nauru, and who served as President of Nauru from December 2007 to November 2011. The son of Nauruan par ...
, the first Nauruan to win gold at the Commonwealth Games, as among his inspirations. His younger brother, Ruben Katoatau, is also a weightlifter.


Olympics statistics


See also

* Kiribati at the 2008 Summer Olympics ;Note


References


External links

*
Pacific Magazine: Kiribati Sends Three Athletes To Beijing Olympics

Athlete Biography
at beijing2008 {{DEFAULTSORT:Katoatau, David 1984 births Living people Weightlifters at the 2008 Summer Olympics Weightlifters at the 2012 Summer Olympics Weightlifters at the 2016 Summer Olympics Olympic weightlifters for Kiribati I-Kiribati male weightlifters People from Nonouti Weightlifters at the 2014 Commonwealth Games Weightlifters at the 2010 Commonwealth Games Commonwealth Games gold medallists for Kiribati Medallists at the 2014 Commonwealth Games Pacific Games gold medalists Pacific Games medalists in weightlifting Pacific Games silver medalists Commonwealth Games gold medallists in weightlifting