Taoriba Biniati (born 1 November 1995) is an

I-Kiribati The Micronesians or Micronesian peoples are various closely related ethnic groups native to Micronesia, a region of Oceania in the Pacific Ocean. They are a part of the Austronesian ethnolinguistic group, which has an Urheimat in Taiwan. Ethno ...

boxer Boxer most commonly refers to: * Boxer (boxing), a competitor in the sport of boxing *Boxer (dog), a breed of dog Boxer or boxers may also refer to: Animal kingdom * Boxer crab * Boxer shrimp, a small group of decapod crustaceans * Boxer snipe ee ...

. Biniati comes from

Tabiteuea Tabiteuea (formerly Drummond's Island) is an atoll in the Gilbert Islands, Kiribati, farther south of Tarawa. This atoll is the bigger and the most populated of the Gilbert Islands but Tarawa. The atoll consists of one main island, in the nor ...

, an atoll in the

Gilbert Islands The Gilbert Islands ( gil, Tungaru;Reilly Ridgell. ''Pacific Nations and Territories: The Islands of Micronesia, Melanesia, and Polynesia.'' 3rd. Ed. Honolulu: Bess Press, 1995. p. 95. formerly Kingsmill or King's-Mill IslandsVery often, this n ...

, Kiribati, south of

Tarawa Tarawa is an atoll and the capital of the Republic of Kiribati,Kiribati
''

Derek Andrewartha, a former police officer from

Hampshire Hampshire (, ; abbreviated to Hants) is a ceremonial county, ceremonial and non-metropolitan county, non-metropolitan counties of England, county in western South East England on the coast of the English Channel. Home to two major English citi ...

, England, advertised for a female boxer to join his club with the aim of competing at the

2014 Commonwealth Games The 2014 Commonwealth Games ( gd, Geamannan a' Cho-fhlaitheis 2014), officially known as the XX Commonwealth Games and commonly known as Glasgow 2014, ( sco, Glesca 2014 or Glesga 2014; gd, Glaschu 2014), was an international multi-sport ev ...

. She is coached by Tarieta Ruata, who represented Kiribati at the 2010 Commonwealth Games in Delhi. The club's only equipment was a single punchbag which they hung from a

breadfruit Breadfruit (''Artocarpus altilis'') is a species of flowering tree in the mulberry and jackfruit family (Moraceae) believed to be a domesticated descendant of ''Artocarpus camansi'' originating in New Guinea, the Maluku Islands, and the Philippi ...

tree. In December 2013 Biniati accompanied the

Queen's Baton Relay The Queen's Baton Relay is a relay around the world held prior to the beginning of the Commonwealth Games. The Baton carries a message from the Head of the Commonwealth, currently King Charles III. The Relay traditionally begins at Buckingha ...

as it passed through Kiribati on the journey to Glasgow.

2014 Commonwealth Games

Biniati was selected to compete for Kiribati at the 2014 Commonwealth Games held in

Glasgow Glasgow ( ; sco, Glesca or ; gd, Glaschu ) is the most populous city in Scotland and the fourth-most populous city in the United Kingdom, as well as being the 27th largest city by population in Europe. In 2020, it had an estimated popul ...

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the ...

, from 23 July to 3 August 2014, in the women's lightweight division. She was the first female boxer from her nation to compete at the Games. Prior to competing at the Commonwealth Games she had never competed in a

ring Ring may refer to: * Ring (jewellery), a round band, usually made of metal, worn as ornamental jewelry * To make a sound with a bell, and the sound made by a bell :(hence) to initiate a telephone connection Arts, entertainment and media Film and ...

or against another woman; she had only sparred with male boxers in Kiribati and Glasgow. Her funding for the Games was provided by the Kiribati government and the

Commonwealth Games Federation The Commonwealth Games Federation (CGF), currently known as Commonwealth Sport, is the international organisation responsible for the direction and control of the Commonwealth Games and Commonwealth Youth Games, and is governing body of the ...

. In Glasgow she trained at a gym belonging to the promoter Alex Morrison; because she had no boots Morrison sent an employee out to purchase her a pair. The day before the official weigh-in for her competition Biniati was two pounds under the minimum weight limit for the lightweight division but she managed to put on the additional required weight by using protein drinks. In her first bout of the competition she faced Isabelle Ratna of Mauritius and lost on points in a unanimous judge's decision after four rounds.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Biniati, Taoriba 1995 births Living people Boxers at the 2014 Commonwealth Games I-Kiribati women boxers People from the Gilbert Islands Commonwealth Games competitors for Kiribati Lightweight boxers