Mesa, Johnson leave for Masters competition

After months of preparation, basketball veterans Arnold Mesa and Ed Johnson will now test their skills.

Both are over 50 years old, but both still remain active in various sports. Now, the two are part of the Guam’s Masters basketball delegation that is competing in the 2006 Pan Pacific Masters Games in Gold Coast, Australia. The event began yesterday and concludes on Nov. 12.

“We’ll be playing for the Guam team, but individually, we’re representing Saipan,” Mesa said. “We’re only playing for the Guam team because Saipan doesn’t have a team, and that’s the goal for next year…to have a team from Saipan.”

Both will return to Saipan on Nov. 14. The two are shouldering their expenses, with the trip costing each about $1,800.

The two got some assistance courtesy of Unity Trade Dress Shop, which took care of their island wear attire for the welcoming parade.

“They’re helping us and we really appreciate the assistance that we’re getting from them,” Mesa said.

The event will host close to 10,000 athletes from around the world competing in 40 sports, and for basketball, the International Olympic Competition is geared toward prepping cagers for the World Masters Championships in 2009. The basketball competition will be held at the Runnaway Bay Sports Centre.

Mesa, who has experience in international Masters competition, will be competing in the 50-and-over category, while Johnson will be competing in the 65-and-over division.

“The level there is really high,” Mesa said in an earlier interview. “It’s all fundamental basketball and that’s why I really enjoy it. I would interview many of the guys because those are guys that are ex-NBA players or semi-professionals, and so I would pick up tips from them. Every time I go to tournaments like that, I learn something new.”

Mesa, who founded the Guam Masters Basketball Association in 1990, was a player-coach in 1994 at Brisbane. He then served as head coach in 1998 in Portland, Oregon. He has also participated in 2002 in Melbourne, Australia, and in 2005 in Edmonton, Canada. He also coached the Guam National Basketball Team to a silver medal in the 1991 South Pacific Games in Papua New Guinea.

For his part, Johnson, who has been residing in the Commonwealth for almost 20 years and known mostly for his play in tennis, has experience playing basketball and badminton while serving in the U.S. Navy from 1957 to 1961. Overall, he has about 30 years of basketball experience, including competing, coaching, and refereeing in various games in Hawaii and the U.S. Virgin Islands.

Both Mesa and Johnson are actively involved in local basketball, serving as referees while also trying to educate local players in hopes of developing the level of play in the CNMI.