Jim sets new 10K record

Noriko Jim heads back to the American Memorial Park via Beach Road to complete the 10K event in last Saturday’s Saipan Marathon. (Roselyn B. Momroyo)

Veteran runner Noriko Jim marked a new CNMI record in 10K after submitting 43:50 in last Saturday’s Saipan Marathon.

The 49-year-old broke the 46:09 record Mamiko Berger established on Aug. 3, 2010 during the Micronesian Games in Koror, Palau. Jim, besides setting the new Commonwealth mark, finished second overall in the 10K event last weekend, placing behind South Korea’s Yunmi Lee (42:54) and beating fellow Saipan runners Kaithlyn Chavez (49:35) and Ayano Braxton (50:26) and Yoon Young Kang (48:29), and Jun Kyung Choi (49:44), also from South Korea.

Meanwhile, Charlie Sendin posted the fastest time among the top finishers in the age group competition in the 10K race, which started and ended at the American Memorial Park with a turnaround point across the former Saipan Mayor’s Office in Beach Road.

Sendin ruled the men’s 30 to 39 age group after clocking in at 43:15, while South Korea’s Heejin Kim won in the women’s division, as she logged 56:44.

Joining Sendin and Kim on the list of top finishers in the various age groups were U15’s Yutian Luo (49:01) and Nathanette Blas (51:32); 16 to 19’s Sebastien Manabat (45:33) and Anika Snyder (50:29); 20 to 29’s Jireh Yobech (45:57) and Mina Choi (57:23); 40 to 49’s Michiteru Mita (49:09) and Xinmei Tang Yarbrough (54:36); 50 to 59’s Jun Hashimoto (44:54) and Liz Church (1:05:11); and over 60’s Steven Pixley (53:13) and Kozue Yamada (1:13:01).

Meanwhile, Japan’s Yasushi Yoneta had the fastest time among the age group winners in the marathon course after recording 2:52:55. He was the lone age group (40 to 49) champion to break the three-hour barrier.

Other age group winners were 16 to 19’s Jianan He (5:16:56) and Vivian Linzhi Wu (6:17:25); 20 to 29’s Taketoshi Oe (3:11:58); 30 to 39’s Seoungho Lee (4:35:58) and Dianne Marie Sapida (3:38:09); 50 to 59’s Hiroyuki Nishimura (3:32:56) and Eiko Mizuna (5:54:02); and over 60’s Chang Whan Jang (4:56:06) and Etsuko Hirayama (5:20:57).

In the half marathon, six runners (age group winners) finished the course in less than two hours—Masahiro Washizu (1:48:29), Yuji Harada (1:58:25), Jim Bryan Damatan (1:50:40), Sarah Vander Wal (1:59:57), Billy Kay Navarrete (1:46:46), and Leith Poole (1:49:43).

Other age group champions in the half marathon were U15’s Li Zhu (2:01:59) and Tiana Cabrera (2:05:52), 16 to19’s Enyang Ji (2:14:44) and Weixiu Yang (2:15:37), 30 to 39’s Astrid Poole (2:02:43), 40 to 49’s Dorris Abagatnan (2:00:15), 50 to 59’s Kimberlee Church (3:00:51), and over 60’s Elizabeth Kohnen (2:15:26).