Pita Taufatofua is a well-known face at the Olympic opening ceremonies, but this year the event in Beijing was without Tonga's famed flag bearer. Taufatofua, a Tongan athlete who is known for carrying the flag for his country without wearing a shirt and instead with oil all over his chest, is not attending the Winter Olympics.
Instead, he is focusing on disaster relief in his home country.
In January, Tonga experienced a volcanic eruption and tsunami that caused damage across the island. Taufatofua, a three-time Olympian, had not qualified yet by January and decided not to continue the process to qualify and compete in Beijing in order to help those living in Tonga.
"Even with the qualification criteria, I wouldn't have been able to go to Beijing [because there are] too many people who are hungry for me to not be focused there," he said. "...I'll certainly miss it, [but] what the Olympics stands for is more than just sport, and so I feel there's some level of Olympic effort that we're doing now anyway."
Taufatofua has raised over $800,000 for disaster relief for Tonga through a GoFundMe page.
On the fundraiser page, he wrote, "Initial priority for the funds will go towards those most in need, infrastructure and damage to schools, hospitals etc. This is an ongoing fundraiser and will be updated regularly. Your assistance and support in this time of need is greatly appreciated."
In past Olympics, Taufatofua has represented Tonga while competing in taekwondo and cross-country skiing.
