15 finalists for Athlete of the Year awards

This past year’s athletic excellence will be feted during the 2021 NMSA Annual Sports Banquet when the Male Athlete of the Year and Female Athlete of the Year will be honored tomorrow evening at the Kensington Hall of Kensington Hotel Saipan.

A total of 15 monthly winners—nine male and six female awardees—are nominated for the yearly honor that been made more difficult and awe-inspiring given that they won the award in yet another year when training and competing were made more difficult by the COVID-19 pandemic.

The past year’s first male monthly winner is Shuji Kuroda after the then Grandvrio Resort Saipan F&B assistant manager won the 6th Saipan Aquathlon (5km run/1km swim/2.5km run) in February 2021 in a time of 56:19.

March winner is Leonardo Apelo who got the nod after topping his weight class en route to being the best overall lifter at the 2nd Annual Marianas Cup Weightlifting Championships. His best snatch was 115 kg/253 lbs and best clean and jerk was 145 kg/319 lbs for a total of 260 kg/572 lbs.

Basketball’s Matthew Richardson also punched his ticket to the yearly awards after leading the NMI Rollers Black Team to the championship of the U19 Division of the Rollers Basketball Association 2021 Spring Madness League. In the finals, the guard/forward had a triple double with 11 points, 12 assists, 16 rebounds, and 4 steals to claim the Finals MVP award.

The islands’ man’amko were hailed when triathlon’s Florence Antonio won the May honor for his performance in that month’s Paupau Taga Triathlon where he won the 60-and-above age group. Despite an extended leave of absence from sports due to health concerns, Antonio was able to outpace his younger rivals. Antonio has bounced back from setbacks and is back into the triathlon and multi-sport race scene.

Andreau Galvez of badminton is the June winner after skippering Shirley’s Badminton Club to the championship of the Tan Holdings Badminton Team Tournament 2021 that month. Galvez finished the competition unbeaten and was the only player in the tournament to earn a perfect 5-0 record.

Paddling’s Jason Tarkong earned the monthly plum for July after ruling the 6.5-mile long-distance V1 race from Kilili Beach to Garapan Fishing Base and back that month. He accomplished the feat by overcoming rough wind and sea conditions not to mention rivals nipping at his heels.

The September awardee is weightlifting’s David Barnhouse who successfully competed in the first-ever Oceania Weightlifting Championships via Internet. Competing in the 109+ kilogram category, he won a silver medal after a snatch of 110 kg (242 lbs) and a clean and jerk of 145 kg (319 lbs) for a total of 255 kg (561 lbs). The meet also saw him earn his first ever ranking in the Oceania Weightlifting Federation and International Weightlifting Federation.

Sefric Veloria of badminton was named male athlete for October after taking home the men’s C singles and men’s C doubles championships in the TakeCare Badminton Open 2021.

For November, Derek Cutting of bodybuilding was literally a cut above the rest after winning first place in the middleweight category and overall champion in the open competition of the 2021 Dee Clayton Classic Bodybuilding & Fitness Championship. A U.S. Army Reserve sergeant, Cutting is a very experienced bodybuilder having previously competed in Guam, the U.S. mainland, and Hawaii.

Triathlon’s Denise Myers leads the women athlete of the year nominees after earning the monthly distinction in January 2021 for her runner-up performance in the 6th Saipan Aquathlon. A health and physical education instructor for the Northern Marianas College, Myers finished the 5km run, 1km swim, and 2.5km run event in a time of 1:08:31.

Antonette Labausa of weightlifting won the March honor after topping her weight class at the 2nd Annual Marianas Cup Weightlifting Championships that month. She had a best snatch at 76 kg/167.2 lbs and a best clean and jerk of 94 kg/206.8 lbs for total of 165 kg/363 lbs.

Cycling’s Julie Rose Felipe was the April winner after the 39-year-old topped the 40-kilometer Saipan Unity Lions Club Bike Race that month. Biking since the age of 9, she was also the winner of the Pika Fest 65KM Road Race held in Tinian two months prior.

Zarinae Sapong of athletics ran the century dash a season best 13.42 seconds in the Northern Marianas Athletics Track and Field Open Meet last June to easily earn her the monthly award for that month. It was her first competition in more than a year since most regional events in athletics have been postponed or cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Heather Calderwood of paddling was the July awardee after the 31-year old came first in the women’s 6.5-mile V1 long-distance race held in July at Kilili Beach. Winds were strong, the seas were rough, and the battle for first place was close. With just four months of paddling experience, Calderwood’s physical fitness, positive attitude, willingness to learn and train hard resulted in the first-place victory.

Badminton’s Malou Malasarte took the October award after she reigned supreme in the women’s B singles and the women’s B doubles of the TakeCare Badminton Open 2021. Malasarte also played in the women’s B doubles, but she and Rowena Houck lost to Hannah Choi and Windy Fernandez in the semis.

Aside from the Male and Female Athletes of the Year, NMSA will also name the Male and Female Student Athletes of the Year, Team of the Year, Coach of the Year, and Administrator of the Year. The association will also fete the monthly winners under the athletes and team categories, while NMSA’s Hall of Fame Screening Committee will announce the new inductees into the NMI Sports Hall of Fame.