Pita Taufatofua has traded the sunshine for the winter snow after qualifying for the cross-country skiing event at the Pyeongchang Winter Olympic Games, only two years after representing the nation in Rio.
The 34-year-old became an internet sensation when he walked out grinning and bare-chested carrying the Tongan flag at the Rio Games.
Having competed in taekwondo in Brazil, losing to Iranian Sajjadd Mardani in the first round, Taufatofua was determined to keep his sporting dream alive.
Determined to compete in another Olympics, this time in colder conditions, Taufatofua turned his attention to skiing where he qualified for the cross-country event on the last possible day in Iceland.
Tonga's flagbearer Pita Nikolas Taufatofua leads his delegation during the opening ceremony of the Rio 2016 Olympic Games. Source: AFP
"This feels really good, something feels really good," an emotional and happy Taufatofua said on the Olympic Channel.
"After Rio I decided to find the hardest sport possible because I needed a new challenge and the hardest sport possible was cross-country skiing.
"If you look at the conditions its freezing and negative a million degrees and then you have to put your body through something really challenging. So I thought I would give it a shot and the goal was to do it in one year and we did it."
Taufatofua said he sacrificed everything, including plunging into his "worst" financial position, but said he is the "happiest ever".
Taufatofua had announced his intention to become Tonga’s first male Olympic cross-country skier at the end of 2016 as he looked for a new challenge after exiting the Rio competition in the first round.
Snow is unknown in Tonga, a tropical Polynesian kingdom of more than 170 islands that is more famous for its international rugby prowess.
Tonga's only previous representative at a Winter Olympics was in Sochi four years ago when Fuahea Semi, who competed as Bruno Banani after a sponsorship deal with a German underwear maker, finished 32nd out of 39 in the men’s luge event.
"I thought 'I have to give it my all. It's grave or glory'. And I gave it absolutely everything," said Taufatofua, who trained on roller skis and set up a crowd-funding page to raise the cash to compete.
Last week he posted a photograph on Instagram from Istanbul airport, where he was stuck after missing a connection to Croatia for a race that could also have secured his place in South Korea.
- With Reuters
