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Consequently, he lost all his strength and struggled to walk or stand without assistance. Some 90% of disabled children in the Pacific Islands do not attend school. Negative perceptions surround people with disabilities, who are not given the respect or equality they deserve and are often excluded from physical activity, which increases their risk of developing non-communicable diseases (NCDs) such as obesity and type 2 diabetes. Luckily, Tevita attended the Ofa Tui Amanake (OTA) disability centre in Tonga, where the Just Play programme is run once a week. Tevita took part in Just Play every week and attended weekly workouts with the Tonga Football Association to build up his strength. When he began, a 2kg weight was too much for him to lift while standing up, and he…"/> <meta name="twitter:title" content="Tonga’s Just Play programme reaps rewards - UEFA Foundation"/> <meta name="twitter:site" content="@UEFA_Foundation"/> <meta name="twitter:image" content="https://web.archive.org/web/20160323051232im_/http://uefafoundation.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/Tevita-Tilini-2.jpg"/> <meta name="twitter:creator" content="@UEFA_Foundation"/>  <link rel="alternate" type="application/rss+xml" title="UEFA Foundation » Feed" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20160323051232/http://uefafoundation.org/feed/"/> <link rel="alternate" type="application/rss+xml" title="UEFA Foundation » Comments Feed" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20160323051232/http://uefafoundation.org/comments/feed/"/> <meta property="og:site_name" content="UEFA Foundation"/><meta property="og:title" content="Tonga’s Just Play programme reaps rewards"/><meta property="og:description" content="Tevita Telini was not born with a disability, but in primary school he had an operation on his head that went wrong. Consequently, he lost all his strength and struggled to walk or stand without assistance. Some 90% of disabled children in the Pacific Islands do not attend school. Negative perceptions surround people with disabilities, who are not given the respect or equality they deserve and are often excluded from physical activity, which increases their risk of developing non-communicable diseases (NCDs) such as obesity and type 2 diabetes. Luckily, Tevita attended the Ofa Tui Amanake (OTA) disability centre in Tonga, where the Just Play programme is run once a week. Tevita took part in Just Play every week and attended weekly workouts with the Tonga Football Association to build up his strength. When he began, a 2kg weight was too much for him to lift while standing up, and he…"/><meta property="og:url" content="https://web.archive.org/web/20160323051232/http://uefafoundation.org/news/tongas-just-play-programme-reaps-rewards/"/><meta property="og:type" content="article"/><meta property="og:locale" content="en_GB"/><meta property="fb:app_id" content="1428372630800251"/><meta property="og:image" content="https://web.archive.org/web/20160323051232im_/http://uefafoundation.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/Tevita-Tilini-2.jpg"/> <script type="text/javascript"> window._wpemojiSettings = {"baseUrl":"https:\/\/web.archive.org\/web\/20160323051232\/https:\/\/s.w.org\/images\/core\/emoji\/72x72\/","ext":".png","source":{"concatemoji":"https:\/\/web.archive.org\/web\/20160323051232\/http:\/\/uefafoundation.org\/wp-includes\/js\/wp-emoji-release.min.js?ver=4.4.2"}}; !function(a,b,c){function d(a){var 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class="screen-reader-text">You are here: </span><a href="/web/20160323051232/http://uefafoundation.org/">Home</a> &rsaquo; <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20160323051232/http://uefafoundation.org/all-news/news/">News</a> &rsaquo; Tonga’s <b>Just Play</b> programme reaps rewards </p> </header> <div id="sidebar-article" class="sidebar fixed-sidebar cf" role="complementary"> <p class="post-date"> Posted <time class="updated-date" datetime="2016-02-18" pubdate>18 February 2016</time> </p> <div id="uefafoundation_social_media_sharing-2" class="widget widget_uefafoundation_social_media_sharing"><h4 class="widgettitle">Share</h4><ul class="social-share"> <li> <a id="share-twitter" class="share-buttons" href="//web.archive.org/web/20160323051232/http://twitter.com/share?text=Tonga%E2%80%99s+Just+Play+programme+reaps+rewards&url=http://uefafoundation.org/news/tongas-just-play-programme-reaps-rewards/&hashtags=UEFAFoundation" target="_blank" title="Share this page on Twitter"></a> <span id="twitter-share-count" class="share-count">0</span> </li> <li> <a id="share-facebook" class="share-buttons" href="#" title="Share this page on Facebook"></a> <span id="facebook-share-count" class="share-count">8</span> </li> </ul></div><div id="uefafoundation_related_topics-2" class="widget widget_uefafoundation_related_topics"><h4 class="widgettitle">Related topics</h4><ul class="list-style"><li><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20160323051232/http://uefafoundation.org/news/just-play-raises-funds-to-rebuild-the-louis-antoine-de-bougainville-school-in-vanuatu/" title="Just Play raises funds to rebuild the Louis-Antoine de Bougainville School in Vanuatu">Just Play raises funds to rebuild the Louis-Antoine de Bougainville School in Vanuatu</a></li></ul></div> </div> <div class="article-wrap cf"> <h1 class="page-title" itemprop="headline">Tonga’s <b>Just Play</b> programme reaps rewards</h1> <section class="entry-content cf" itemprop="articleBody"> <p>Tevita Telini was not born with a disability, but in primary school he had an operation on his head that went wrong. Consequently, he lost all his strength and struggled to walk or stand without assistance.</p> <p>Some 90% of disabled children in the Pacific Islands do not attend school. Negative perceptions surround people with disabilities, who are not given the respect or equality they deserve and are often excluded from physical activity, which increases their risk of developing non-communicable diseases (NCDs) such as obesity and type 2 diabetes.</p> <p>Luckily, Tevita attended the Ofa Tui Amanake (OTA) disability centre in Tonga, where the Just Play programme is run once a week.</p> <p>Tevita took part in Just Play every week and attended weekly workouts with the Tonga Football Association to build up his strength. When he began, a 2kg weight was too much for him to lift while standing up, and he could only do one sit-up before he was exhausted. Tevita’s lack of fitness and inactive lifestyle put him at a higher risk of developing NCDs. However, he is very determined and worked hard to build up his strength at the OTA centre and through Just Play.</p> <p>His hard work paid off when, at the age of 31, he was selected to represent Tonga in the 2015 Special Olympic Games in Los Angeles. After two years of training, Tevita was capable of lifting 20kg, and could complete three sets of 20 sit-ups. His tenacity has also earned him a place at the 2017 Special Olympic Games, where he will compete in the javelin, shot-put and discus.</p> <p>Not only has Tevita improved his lifestyle, built up his strength and lowered his risk of developing NCDs, he has also become a role model to aspiring disabled and non-disabled athletes around Tonga. He has proved that with hard work and determination, you can overcome obstacles and achieve something great. Tevita and many others who have participated in Just Play have changed perceptions surrounding disabled people in the Pacific Islands, proving that they deserve respect just like everybody else.</p> <div class="video-container"><iframe width="770" height="433" src="https://web.archive.org/web/20160323051232if_/https://www.youtube.com/embed/Vv7s0xZK0RU?feature=oembed" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe></div> <p>While Just Play is a sport for development programme that targets children aged 6 to 12, the programme has no age limit for participants with intellectual disabilities. Just Play is managed by the Oceania Football Confederation, with support from the UEFA Foundation for Children, the Australian Government, the Australian Football Federation, the New Zealand government and UNICEF.</p> <p>To find out more about <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20160323051232/http://uefafoundation.org/action/just-play/">Just Play</a> programme</p> </section> </div> </article> </div> </div> </div> <footer class="footer" role="contentinfo"> <div id="pre-footer" class="sidebar cf"> <div id="inner-prefooter" class="wrap cf"> <div id="uefafoundation_social_media-2" class="widget widget_uefafoundation_social_media"><div class="social-links"> <a id="follow-twitter" class="social-buttons" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20160323051232/https://twitter.com/uefa_foundation" target="_blank" alt="Follow us on Twitter">Follow us on Twitter</a> <a id="follow-facebook" class="social-buttons" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20160323051232/https://www.facebook.com/pages/UEFA-Foundation-for-children/1390557581256583" target="_blank" alt="Follow us on Facebook">Follow us on Facebook</a> </div></div> </div> </div> <div id="inner-footer" class="wrap cf"> <nav role="navigation"> <h2 class="outline">Quick navigation</h2> <ul id="menu-footer_en" class="nav footer-nav cf"><li id="menu-item-787" class="menu-item menu-item-type-post_type menu-item-object-post menu-item-787"><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20160323051232/http://uefafoundation.org/uncategorized/privacy-policy/">Privacy Policy</a></li> <li id="menu-item-790" class="menu-item menu-item-type-post_type menu-item-object-post menu-item-790"><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20160323051232/http://uefafoundation.org/uncategorized/terms-conditions/">Terms & conditions</a></li> <li id="menu-item-784" class="menu-item menu-item-type-post_type menu-item-object-post menu-item-784"><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20160323051232/http://uefafoundation.org/uncategorized/sitemap/">Site Map</a></li> <li id="menu-item-805" class="menu-item menu-item-type-post_type menu-item-object-post menu-item-805"><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20160323051232/http://uefafoundation.org/uncategorized/media/">Media Contacts</a></li> <li id="menu-item-5446" class="menu-item menu-item-type-post_type menu-item-object-post menu-item-5446"><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20160323051232/http://uefafoundation.org/uncategorized/faq/">FAQ</a></li> <li id="menu-item-351" class="menu-item menu-item-type-post_type menu-item-object-post menu-item-351"><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20160323051232/http://uefafoundation.org/quick-links/jobs/">Jobs</a></li> <li id="menu-item-352" class="menu-item menu-item-type-post_type menu-item-object-post menu-item-352"><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20160323051232/http://uefafoundation.org/quick-links/contact-us/">Contact</a></li> </ul> </nav> <div class="copyright">© 2014-2016 UEFA Foundation for Children. 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