Palau Athletics Content Creators Shine During Pacific Mini Games
Empowering athletes and storytellers to capture their moment on the world stage
In the lead-up to the Pacific Mini Games 2025, a group of athletes and volunteers from Palau Athletics came together for a unique opportunity—becoming content creators for their national team.
Palauan Creators; Sean Angelo, Sydney Francisco, Righteous Adaba, and Tyson Chinn. All the creators were competing athletes during the games or volunteers bringing the athlete-first experience to the course.
Delivered virtually over three one-hour sessions by Oceania Athletics Communications and Media Officer Casey Sims, the course introduced the fundamentals of social media storytelling—how to capture content, structure a post, and build a Games-time content plan tailored to athletics and Team Palau.
Once on the ground in Palau, the group gathered trackside for an on-site session to refine their skills, focusing on video and photo positioning, understanding key storytelling moments, and how to highlight Palauan athletes in their best light.
During competition the group frequently checked and shared information on how to capture in the everchanging weather conditions, constraints of the competition, and working around live-stream
The result? A series of compelling, authentic content that not only showcased the athletes’ performances but helped boost the reach of Palau Athletics to new heights. Posts collectively on Facebook and Instagram from the team viewed over 1 million times during the Pacific Mini Games. The Palau Athletics Channels saw at 26% increase on Facebook and 56% increase on Instagram during the Games period.
The program didn’t just increase visibility of Palau Athletics, it unlocked creativity and built confidence among Palau’s next generation of media leaders.
When asked of their experience and what they enjoyed was through the Content Creation course
Tyson: “My experience in the content creation course was eye-opening. It gave me a better understanding of how to create meaningful content for athletics.”.
Righteous: “My experience was great – it was exactly everything I wanted it to be. I loved the content planning part – knowing where I needed to be and what to focus on during each race just made everything easier.”
Sydney: “I’m grateful for the experience – it helped me discover a new passion for content creation. It opened the door to new interests beyond being an athlete.”
Sean: “The course was incredibly fulfilling. It helped me become a better photographer and content creator for Palau Athletics. There’s a thrill in capturing that perfect shot – it feels like a reward, especially when your work is shared on social media.”
What was the key learnings for you in the course
Righteous: “The key takeaways for me were how to take the best shots, photo editing, and really tapping into that creative mindset.”
Sydney: “I learned how to tell stories through photos and videos, and how creativity can grow when you work together.”
Tyson: “Some key learnings for me were how to keep the viewers engaged with your content and also how you should structure a social media post.”
Sean: ” I also learned how important time management and flexibility are, especially when things don’t go to plan.”
This grassroots initiative highlights the power of digital storytelling in amplifying Pacific voices and empowering the next generation of media leaders in sport. With a camera in hand and their athletes on the track, the Palau team proved there are stories to be told and they’re ready to tell them.
—ENDS—