Taoriba Biniati

Taoriba Biniati (born 1 November 1995) is an I-Kiribati boxer.

Biniati comes from Tabiteuea, an atoll in the Gilbert Islands, Kiribati, south of Tarawa.^[2] She took up boxing after , a former police officer from Hampshire, England, advertised for a female boxer to join his club with the aim of competing at the 2014 Commonwealth Games. She is coached by , who represented in Delhi.^[3] The club's only equipment was a single punchbag which they hung from a breadfruit tree.^[2]

In December 2013 Biniati accompanied the Queen's Baton Relay as it passed through Kiribati on the journey to Glasgow.^[1]

2014 Commonwealth Games[]

Biniati was selected to compete for Kiribati at the 2014 Commonwealth Games held in Glasgow, Scotland, 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.^[4] Prior to competing at the Commonwealth Games she had never competed in a ring or against another woman; she had only sparred with male boxers in Kiribati and Glasgow.^[3][4] Her funding for the Games was provided by the Kiribati government and the Commonwealth Games Federation.^[2]

In Glasgow she trained at a gym belonging to the promoter ; 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.^[3]

In her first bout of the competition she faced of Mauritius and lost on points in a unanimous judge's decision after four rounds.^[2][5]

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