Pacific athletics sprint king Banuve Tabakaucoro says he is yet to recover from the news of Roy Ravana Junior’s passing in the United States.

Ravana died in a gun attack in South Sacramento yesterday.

Tabakaucoro was a year ahead of Ravana Junior at Marist Brother’s High School and the duo ran together at local and international competitions before Ravana received a scholarship to study at Iowa Community College.

_“We’ve been training together for more than 7 years. To lose a training partner who has pushed you to your limits and has been there through your struggles, it’s really tough to take in. He was a really gifted athlete and it’s a gold medal down for Fiji in next year’s Pacific Games.”
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Junior was also part of the squad preparing for the Commonwealth Games in Scotland next month.

His funeral arrangements are yet to be announced.