Hiko Fungavaka became Oceania Hockey Federation’s first Pacific Island Hockey Development Officer in 2016, but his involvement with OHF started by facilitating the first Olympic Solidarity Hockey Coaching Course in 2004 where he met our Continental Development Officer Gill Gemming for the very first time.
Up until 2016, Hiko was initially employed as the Tonga Olympic Committee (TASANOC) Sport Development Officer. He was also elected to the Board of TASANOC and Hiko’s knowledge of Olympic Solidarity grants enabled Tonga Hockey Federation to gain annual grants for equipment, coaching and umpiring workshops and to support teams travelling to OHF events. Hiko’s reputation within Tonga sport saw him named as the Chef de Mission for the entire Tonga National Team representing the nation at the 2023 Pacific Games in the Solomon Islands. He managed that role admirably yet still managed to be on the bench for all Tonga Hockey matches as a support Coach.
It was in 2015 that Hiko expressed a desire to work full time developing hockey to extend its reach from being a sport for girls and women only, to include boys, men and people with a disability. Hiko, was the first Pacific Island Development Officer to engage regularly with a group of people with a disability.
Through his knowledge of how sport grows, Hiko invested significant time and energy into kindergartens, primary and secondary schools, introducing young people to the sport of hockey and building a legacy for Tonga Hockey Federation. He used the national hockey players as role models in schools, and this has impacted on the national players developing their own capabilities and leadership. As a OSEP Master Educator, you facilitated many coaching and umpiring courses on behalf of Tonga Hockey and recognised the need to have specific teacher workshops to support teachers to continue hockey activities in their schools.
The positive relationships Hiko developed and maintained with outside agencies like TASANOC and government ministries, like Education and Sport, have resulted in Hockey being recognized and invited to participate in many activities where there is a multi-sport approach, thus taking Hockey from a small minority activity into a recognised activity able to hold its own in the wider sporting world.
A standout contribution for both OHF and Tonga HF has been Hiko’s ability to organise funding for Tongan teams to attend as many Oceania and Continental events as possible. This includes four Pacific Games, a FIH World League Series, a Youth Olympic Games Qualifier, and three Oceania Cup Hockey 5s Tournaments.
Hiko’s dedication and persistence resulted in him being able to, on several occasions, battle with outside influences on behalf of Tonga Hockey and their Representative Teams, to lift them from not reaching their potential to being the mini powerhouses they are developing into today.
Congratulations on being awarded an OHF Life Member in November 2025 to recognise outstanding service.