Ryan John Pini MBE (born 10 December 1981 in Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea) is a 4-time Olympic swimmer from

Papua New Guinea Papua New Guinea, officially the Independent State of Papua New Guinea, is an island country in Oceania that comprises the eastern half of the island of New Guinea and offshore islands in Melanesia, a region of the southwestern Pacific Ocean n ...

. He swam for PNG at the

2004 2004 was designated as an International Year of Rice by the United Nations, and the International Year to Commemorate the Struggle Against Slavery and Its Abolition (by UNESCO). Events January * January 3 – Flash Airlines Flight 60 ...

2008 2008 was designated as: *International Year of Languages *International Year of Planet Earth *International Year of the Potato *International Year of Sanitation The Great Recession, a worldwide recession which began in 2007, continued throu ...

2012 2012 was designated as: *International Year of Cooperatives *International Year of Sustainable Energy for All Events January *January 4 – The Cicada 3301 internet hunt begins. * January 12 – Peaceful protests begin in the R ...

, and

2016 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 ...

; also serving as the PNG flagbearer in 2008 and 2016. He is the first PNG swimmer ever to reach an Olympic final. Pini competes for the Boroko Swim Club.

International career

2002 Commonwealth Games

At his first ever Commonwealth Games, Pini made the semifinal in all 4 events contested (50m/100m Butterfly, 50m Freestyle and 50m Backstroke)

2004 Summer Olympics

Pini competed in the 100m Butterfly at the

2004 Summer Olympics The 2004 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXVIII Olympiad (), and officially branded as Athens 2004 (), were an international multi-sport event held from 13 to 29 August 2004 in Athens, Greece. The Games saw 10,625 athletes ...

, finishing 18th.

2006 Commonwealth Games

* 100m Butterfly At the

2006 Commonwealth Games The 2006 Commonwealth Games, officially the XVIII Commonwealth Games and commonly known as Melbourne 2006, were an International sport, international multi-sport event for members of the Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth held in Melbourne ...

, Pini became just the second individual from Papua New Guinea to win an individual gold medal at Commonwealth Games, when he won the Men's 100m Butterfly. In doing so, Pini also won Papua New Guinea's first ever swimming medal at a Commonwealth Games. His winning time of 52.64 was enough to edge out Michael Klim of

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

and Moss Burmester of

New Zealand New Zealand () is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and List of islands of New Zealand, over 600 smaller islands. It is the List of isla ...

. Pini also competed in the final of the Men's 50m Butterfly, finishing fifth, and made the semifinal of the Men's 100m Freestyle.

2007 World Aquatics Championships

Pini competed in the

2007 World Aquatics Championships The 2007 World Aquatics Championships, or the XII FINA World Championships, were held in Melbourne, Australia from 17 March to 1 April 2007. The competition took place at three locations in central Melbourne: the Melbourne Sports and Aquatic C ...

in Melbourne. He reached the 100m Butterfly and 50m Butterfly semifinals. He competed in the heats of the 100m Freestyle.

2008 Summer Olympics

Pini was the flag bearer for

at the

Opening Ceremony An opening ceremony, grand opening, or ribbon-cutting ceremony marks the official opening of a newly constructed location or the start of an event.

of 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. Pini ranked first in the third heat of the Men's 100m Freestyle, but did not make a qualifying time for the semifinals. He also competed in heats for the 200m Freestyle. Pini competed in the Swimming at the

– Men's 100m Butterfly, where he was Papua New Guinea's most widely anticipated chance at attaining a first Olympic medal. He competed in the finals, and finished 8th overall, in a tough line up which included American big fish

Michael Phelps Michael Fred Phelps II (born June 30, 1985) is an American former competitive swimmer. He is the most successful and most decorated Olympian of all time with a total of 28 medals. Phelps also holds the all-time records for Olympic gold me ...

, who took gold. Pini was the first Papua New Guinean ever to swim an Olympic final.

2010 Commonwealth Games

* 100m Butterfly Pini won Silver in 100m Butterfly Finals in a time of 52.50. Pini also competed in the final of the Men's 50m Butterfly, finishing 5th in a time of 23.88. Pini qualified for the 100m Freestyle Semifinal but had to pull out due to illness and to concentrate on the 50m Butterfly Final.

2012 Summer Olympics

Pini competed in the 100m Butterfly 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 ...

, finishing 26th.

2016 Summer Olympics

Pini competed in the 100 m Butterfly event at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro. He finished in 30th place in the heats with a time of 53.24 seconds. He did not advance to the semifinals.

Training

Pini trains under super coach Rick Van Der Zant and alongside ex Australian swimming representative Andrew Mewing. His other training partners include Jackson Van Der Zant, Sam James, Adam Hosking, and Josh Smith.

Early life

Pini was born and raised in Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea and is the third youngest of four children (2 older brothers and 1 younger sister). His parents Kevin and Sarenah Pini own a family business, Theodist, based in PNG. Pini began swimming at the age of six and attended lessons at Boroko Amateur Swimming Club. By the age of six, he held a national record for his age group (8 and under). Graduating from Port Moresby International High School in 1999, Pini then moved to Brisbane to further his studies and to eventually pursue his swimming career. Shoulder injuries have hindered Pini, with his fourth shoulder operation done in January 2011.

Personal life

Pini married Brisbane born Carly Vincenzi in October 2011 at Stradbroke Island. In his spare time, Pini enjoys wake boarding, kite surfing, diving and motor bike riding in PNG as well as snow boarding in Canada.

Honours and awards

After his victory in the 100m Butterfly at the 2006 Commonwealth Games, Pini was ranked number one in the world for the event and held this ranking for 4 months. Pini has also received the following awards: *

Member of the Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding valuable service in a wide range of useful activities. It comprises five classes of awards across both civil and military divisions, the most senior two o ...

–

2005 2005 was designated as the International Year for Sport and Physical Education and the International Year of Microcredit. The beginning of 2005 also marked the end of the International Decade of the World's Indigenous Peoples, Internationa ...

(for services to swimming) * Papua New Guinea ''SP Sportsman of the Year Award'' – 2003, 2004, 2005, 2011, 2015 * Papua New Guinea ''SP Lifetime Achievement Award'' – 2008 * The ONOC Male Oceania Athlete of the Year Award – 2015 * South Pacific Games Male ''Swimmer of the Meet'' – 2003 (won 7 events, 4 in Games Records)

Career best times

Long course (50-metre pool) Short course (25-metre pool)

Out of the pool

* Sponsorships: Bank South Pacific (2011 to current), Airlines PNG (2007 to 2009) * Ambassadors: Bank South Pacific (2011 to current), Airlines PNG (2007 to 2009)

References

"PNG wildcard bid fails for Paralympics, Mopio Jane through"
ABC Radio Australia, 18 June 2008

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Pini, Ryan 1981 births Living people Papua New Guinean male swimmers Swimmers at the 2004 Summer Olympics Swimmers at the 2008 Summer Olympics Swimmers at the 2012 Summer Olympics Swimmers at the 2016 Summer Olympics Olympic swimmers for Papua New Guinea Male butterfly swimmers Commonwealth Games gold medallists for Papua New Guinea Commonwealth Games silver medallists for Papua New Guinea Swimmers at the 2002 Commonwealth Games Swimmers at the 2006 Commonwealth Games Swimmers at the 2010 Commonwealth Games Sportspeople from the National Capital District (Papua New Guinea) Members of the Order of the British Empire Commonwealth Games gold medallists in swimming Commonwealth Games silver medallists in swimming Medallists at the 2006 Commonwealth Games Medallists at the 2010 Commonwealth Games Pacific Games gold medalists for Papua New Guinea Pacific Games medalists in swimming Pacific Games silver medalists for Papua New Guinea Pacific Games bronze medalists for Papua New Guinea