Previous Story
Bodybuilders, swimmer earn NMSA honors
Athletes from the CNMI Bodybuilding and Physique Federation and Northern Mariana Islands Swimming Federation earned the July athletes of the month honors in Thurday night’s monthly meeting of the Northern Marianas Sports Association at the Gilbert C. Ada Gymnasium’s conference room.
Enrico Valdez and Ran Hee Yoo were named the Male and Female Athletes of the Month, while Sean Japor joined swimmer Ashley Dangol as the Male and Female Student Athletes.
Valdez ruled the Open Men’s Physique competition in last month’s 2nd CNMI Bodybuilding and Physique Championships. He defeated mixed martial artist Kelvin Fitial and Zhang Wei for the title.
It was Valdez’s third straight crown after clinching the 3rd Marianas Muscle Bodybuilding and Physique Competition in March this year. He also bested six other participants to win the overall crown in the 2016 Dee Clayton Classic in October 2016.
Yoo placed second in the Masters Women’s Physique but the 65-year-old was the crowd favorite. It was her first time to compete and stand in front of an audience to show off her physique.
She was born two years after the Korean War, has two grown children—a girl and a boy—five grandkids, and four step great grandkids.
Japor won the Junior Men’s Physique title.
Dangol had a record-breaking performance in July with the 11-year-old resetting the 100-meter and 200m butterfly. She posted a time of 1:13.19 in the 100m, while 2:45.00 in the 200m for a new CNMI record in the 11-12 age group.
