Rita Taimalietane Fatialofa-Patolo (née Fatialofa, born 1963) is a Samoan sportsperson who played

netball Netball is a ball sport played on a court by two teams of seven players. It is among a rare number of sports which have been created exclusively for female competitors. The sport is played on indoor and outdoor netball courts and is specifical ...

and

softball Softball is a game similar to baseball played with a larger ball on a smaller field. Softball is played competitively at club levels, the college level, and the professional level. The game was first created in 1887 in Chicago by George Hanc ...

for New Zealand.

Biography

Fatialofa-Patolo attended

Lynfield College "Learn to Live" , established = 1958 , principal = Ms Cath Knell , address = White Swan Road,Mt Roskill,Auckland , coordinates = , type = State coed secondary, years 9–13 , roll = () , decile = 6N , MOE = 7 ...

in Auckland. She played for the

New Zealand national netball team The New Zealand national netball team, commonly known as the Silver Ferns, represent New Zealand in international netball. The team take their nickname from the Silver Tree Fern (''Cyathea dealbata''), which is an emblem for many New Zealand s ...

, the Silver Ferns, from 1982 to 1989. While able to play the shooting circle, her specialised position was wing-attack. She retired after the

1989 World Games The 1989 World Games (german: 1989 Weltspiele), commonly known as Karlsruhe 1989, were the third edition of the World Games, an international multi-sport event held in Karlsruhe, West Germany. Titles 112 titles were awarded in 19 sports (5 invi ...

where New Zealand defeated Australia in the final. Fatialofa-Patolo later coached the Samoan national netball team at the

1991 File:1991 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Boris Yeltsin, elected as Russia's first president, waves the new flag of Russia after the 1991 Soviet coup d'état attempt, orchestrated by Soviet hardliners; Mount Pinatubo erupts in the Phil ...

and

1995 Netball World Championships The 1995 World Netball Championships was the ninth edition of the INF Netball World Cup, a quadrennial premier event in international netball. It was held in Birmingham, England and featured a record 27 teams. South Africa returned to competiti ...

. In 1999, she was inducted into the New Zealand Sports Hall of Fame, and was also included in

Netball New Zealand Netball New Zealand is the national body which oversees, promotes and manages netball in New Zealand, including the Silver Ferns. In 2019, 137,713 players were registered with Netball New Zealand, the governing body for organised netball in the co ...

's all-time Dream Team. In softball, she was a member of the team that won the 1982 ISF World Championship in Taipei, defeating the host nation in the final. In the

2014 New Year Honours The New Year Honours 2014 were appointments by some of the 16 Commonwealth realms to various orders and honours to recognise and reward good works by citizens of those countries. The New Year Honours are awarded as part of the New Year celebrati ...

, Fatialofa-Patolo was appointed a

Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit The New Zealand Order of Merit is an order of merit in the New Zealand royal honours system. It was established by royal warrant on 30 May 1996 by Elizabeth II, Queen of New Zealand, "for those persons who in any field of endeavour, have ren ...

for services to sport.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Fatialofa-Paloto, Rita 1963 births Living people Samoan netball players New Zealand international netball players New Zealand softball players World Games gold medalists Netball players at the 1989 World Games Members of the New Zealand Order of Merit Netball players at the 1985 World Games 1983 World Netball Championships players 1987 World Netball Championships players People educated at Lynfield College