Repeat winners in XTERRA Saipan relay

The Top 3 finishers in the men’s relay race of the 2017 XTERRA Saipan pose with their medals during the awards ceremony last Saturday at the Fiesta Resort & Spa Saipan. (Jon Perez)

The tested trio of Ernie Moises, Bob Ferrer, and Roy Ortizo made it back-to-back after topping the relay race in last Saturday’s 2017 XTERRA Saipan Championship.

The winning team completed the 1.5-kilometer swim, 30K bike, and 12K trail run in 3:54:44 to finish first overall and get the men’s relay gold medal in the 16th edition of XTERRA’s Crown Jewel. The champion squad’s time last weekend was just a minute and change slower than its mark (3:53:22) in 2016 when it defeated four other squads in the division and placed second overall.

Moises was the swimmer on the team and completed the two-lap race in the waters off Micro Beach at the 29:03 mark (26th place out of 51 swimmers). Ferrer took over in the bike leg and his 2:03:11 ranked him at No. 22—even ahead of Japanese pro Takahiro Ogasawara (2:03:41). For the finish, Ortizo timed in at 1:21:45 (23rd best), giving his team a more than two-minute lea against runners-up Kento Akimaru, Narlo Jacosalem, and Dencio Bautista, who combined for 3:57:19. Akimaru was the first swimmer (in the relay) out of the water after clocking in at 19:59, while Jacosalem and Bautista registered 2:14:36 and 1:22:14 in the bike and swim legs, respectively.

Completing the Top 3 finish in the men’s division were Christian Villacrusis, Rhenmer Remillosa, and Butch Sublemente. Villacrusis gave his team a good start as he was second in the swim leg for the relay after submitting 21:58. The squad was still in a close fight against the eventual Top 2 finishers after Remillosa recorded 2:12:07 in the bike leg. However, Villacrusis and Remillosa had to settle for third after Sublemente fell behind in the run leg with his 1:28:18 mark.

Meanwhile, Jinju Thompson, Wynn Brillo and Rintaro Miyawaki teamed up anew and ruled the mixed relay.

The trio, which placed second in their division last year behind by only 10 seconds against the champion squad, combined for 3:54:54 to finish way ahead of its competitors. Thompson completed the swim leg in 27:56 for the third best in the relay, while Brillo’s 2:13:59 was also ranked No.3 in the team event. Miyawaki, on the other hand, was the fastest runner in the relay after timing in at 1:12:59.

Miyawaki and company finished nearly 20 minutes ahead of runners-up Emily Northrop, Ferdinand Ramos, and Ronald Villafria, who timed in at 4:13:12. Vince Seman, Noe Valdissimo, and Nicole Harkness came in at third after logging 4:47:42, while Neda Farzan, Tina Goodwin, and Chris Fryling finished fourth with their 5:04:55.