Saimoni Tamani (born 14 November 1944) is a Fijian former athlete who specialized in running the 400 metres (400-meter dash).
College years Tamani was a track star at Brigham Young University in Provo, Utah.BYU men's track records list
Running/Sprinting career Tamani won a gold medal in the 1966 South Pacific Games in Noumea. He won three gold medals at the 1969 South Pacific Games in Port Moresby. At the 1970 Commonwealth Games in Edinburgh, Tamani won the bronze medal in the 400 metres with a time of 45.82 seconds. It was Fiji's first medal in athletics at the Commonwealth Games since 1950. He was slated to compete at the 1972 Summer Olympics in Munich, West Germany, but suffered a foot injury during the NCAA indoor track season.Fiji Olympics Committee article on Tamani
Post running career In 1973 he moved to the United States, where he worked at a paper mill in Longview, Washington, retiring after 30 years.
He was inducted into the Fiji Sports Hall of Fame in 1991.
Personal life Tamani is a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
Achievements Representing 1966South Pacific GamesNouméa, New Caledonia1st4x400 m relay3:24.08 min1969South Pacific GamesPort Moresby, Papua New Guinea1st400 m48.8 s1st800 m1:57.3 min1st4x400 m relay3:19.6 min19701970 EdinburghEdinburgh, Scotland3rd400 m45.82 s
References
External links
2009 Deseret Morning News Church Almanac (Salt Lake City, Utah: Deseret Morning News, 2008) p. 326.