Seven young women have embarked on a journey that will open pathways for Samoan female athletes to become professional athletes and have a career in rugby league.

The Toa Athletes Elite Women’s Rugby League program – which is supported through PacificAus Sports Small Grants Program 2022-23 – was launched on Thursday at the PacificAus Sports office in Lepea.

The seven women will have the opportunity to train in Australia and have access to resources from the NRL [National Rugby League] through the funding provided by the Australian government.

Gabrielle Apelu, who is heading the initiative and is one of the players in the program, said this would definitely open the doors for many Samoan women.

“The end goal here is to have our elite players get a professional contract with the NRLW [National Rugby League Women] and once this happens, a pathway will be made for other women to join in as well,” she said. “Right now, rugby league is one of those sports that has the highest chances of securing contracts for women.

“This is the beginning and we are hoping to achieve our end result. Once our young women start getting recognised as professional players, this would provide them with a way to make money and provide for their families.”

Ms. Apelu said the seven players are elite athletes, which means that they train with dedication and stick to the regime given to them, and this is a pathway to becoming professionals.

Australian High Commission’s Acting First Secretary, Patrick Lawson said Samoa and Australia’s shared passion for sports is a valued part of the relationship between the two nations.

He said Samoa’s diaspora community has a strong presence in Australian netball, rugby union and rugby league competitions at the community level through to national level competitions.

“We know sport is a powerful platform for improving gender equality, and we work with sports organisations such as Apelu Sports across the region to empower women to succeed, with access to world-class coaching and mentoring, and exposure to more top-level competition,” said Mr. Lawson. “We look forward to Toa Samoa and the Kangaroos meeting again at the recently announced Pacific Rugby League Championships later this year.

“The Championships, in partnership with the NRL, were launched by Prime Minister Albanese and will feature teams from across the region, including Toa Samoa and Fetu Samoa.”

Mr. Lawson said the Pacific Championships responds to a desire from Pacific communities for increased elite-level rugby league competition, delivered in the Pacific, for a Pacific audience.

He said the Australian government will continue to build the capacity in the Pacific region and deliver high-performance pathways for Pacific athletes, coaches, referees and administrators.

The seven young women in the Toa Athletes program are Linda Lafaele, Gabrielle Apelu, Anasis Afia, Lepa Fa’auso, Maria Siaosi, Silevu Letauga and Suliando Lafai.

The Regional Sports Hub Manager of PacificAusSports, Taupau Alex Mikaele also attended the official launching of the Toa Athletes Elite Women’s Rugby League program.