Para athlete Peter Cowan will visit Vanuatu to inspire para athletes. Photo credit: New Zealand Paralympics.
By Michelle Curran
Executive Communications Manager, Pasifika TV/PCBL
In Vanuatu, there is a movement happening, to shine light on its “Hidden People”.
Vanuatu Paralympic Committee (VPC) President Margaret McFarlane says this is how the organisation refers to para athletes in the Pacific island nation.
“Here in Vanuatu, we do not know how many people are living with a disability,” Maragaret says.
“Having a child or family member is seen as shameful, having a child with an impairment is clouded in fears of custom curses, taboo, and exclusion from community life, school and the opportunity for meaningful engagement and employment.”
However, VPC, with support from the New Zealand High Commission in Vanuatu, are striving to change community perceptions of people with disabilities and is organising a special visit from Aotearoa New Zealand Paralympian Peter Cowan, from May 20-26, 2026.
“VPC tries to coordinate an event each year with a guest para athlete from a different sport to showcase inclusion in sport and use their story as a Champion of Change,” Margaret explains.
This year, with the Vanuatu Va’a Federation registering with the Vanuatu Association of Sports And National Olympic Committee (VASONOC), it was decided to focus to raise awareness about para va’a (waka ama/outrigging canoe) in Vanuatu.
Inspirational role model
Of Samoan and Māori (Ngāti Kahungunu) descent and from Hastings, Peter is an inspiration to all.
At age 15, while training on his bike for the Iron Māori triathlon in New Zealand, he was clipped by an oncoming car.
After the serious accident, Peter later made the difficult decision to amputate his injured leg.
In his last year of high school, he discovered paddling and soon fell in love with the sport.
He has won two golds and a silver in the World Waka Ama Championships and placed fourth in the 2018 ICF Canoe Sprint World Championships.
In June 2024, Peter competed for New Zealand at the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games and won bronze medal in the Men’s 200m VL3.
Peter will fly with a delegation to the Maskyline Islands, a cluster of small coral atoll islands to the southeast end of Malekula, where the use of outrigger canoes is a part of daily life, Margaret explains.
Along with the delegation, he will see where va’a are made, paddle with locals in a Come and Try Day, and attend a gala dinner, hosted by the Port Vila Carbine Club.
Supporting sport in the Pacific
Over the past few years, Margaret says the New Zealand High Commission has supported various para-sport initiatives, including the Hub and Spoke Programme in Torba Province and Penama Province, and in 2019, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade (MFAT) assisted with funding construction of a seated frame for shotput and javelin throwers.
Additionally, through Paralympics New Zealand, there has been funding for New Zealand-based competitions, while para-throwing coach John Eden has assisted VPC athletes, which has resulted in a strong relationship between the two countries over the last decade, she adds.
The New Zealand High Commissioner Peter Kemp says sporting connections are a key and growing element of the New Zealand-Vanuatu relationship.
“We’re proud to partner with the Vanuatu Paralympic Committee to further bolster those connections and support its efforts to encourage greater participation in sport,” Peter says.
“We’re excited about Peter Cowan’s visit and its demonstration of the close ties between our countries and our shared values of inclusion, opportunity, and community.”
Regional partnerships
In another demonstration of regional partnership, Pacific Cooperation Broadcasting Limited (PCBL), funded by MFAT to support and uplift Pacific media, will provide editorial guidance to Vanuatu Broadcasting Television Corporation (VBTC) during the visit, to deliver stories that amplify the achievements of para athletes, promote inclusion in sport and inspire change in perceptions of people with disabilities.
Check your local Pacific broadcasters and Pasifika TV for schedules.