[File Photo]

Fiji can expect an electrifying atmosphere at this year’s Coca-Cola Games as excitement is building since the last Fiji Finals was played over three years ago.

However, governing institutions and authorities have issued a word of caution for athletes and supporters on the need for an incident-free meet.

Minister for Education Premila Kumar says they recognize the importance of the Fiji Finals in fostering healthy sports rivalry amongst secondary schools but stresses that student safety remains paramount.

“There is going to be a lot of celebration and the atmosphere will be so exciting but then the worry is that after Coca-Cola every game or any other game, we tend to hear that the students have not returned or there was a brawl or the students were found loitering or students found with drugs and that becomes a worry.”

Kumar says the onus is now on teachers, parents, students and authorities to create a safe environment for the three-day secondary school tournament that stops the nation.

“The worry still remains and we rely a lot on the Fiji Police at this time and they have been providing wonderful support to the Ministry of Education over the years and this time around we are kindly requesting them to assist us in just making sure this game is incident free and without any controversy and it ends well.”

The Ministry of Education continues to stress the need for good sportsmanship to avoid brawls following the meet as seen in previous years.