Opening ceremony weaves together tradition, high-tech

The opening ceremony of the long-awaited Northern Marianas Pacific Mini Games 2022 brought together 20 Pacific nations to the Oleai Sports Complex and held them in a trance for more than three hours in a display of pageantry capped by a dazzling show of drone artistry.

Over 1,800 athletes, officials, media, volunteers, and supporters of the 20 Pacific island nations, along with over 1,000 community members that crowded inside the sports complex and at the adjacent beach banded together to witness a historic first in the CNMI.

Athletes vying for medals from 20 Pacific nations paraded around the Oleai Pacific Sports Complex, waving their colorful flags, with the flag bearers donning their traditional clothing, and their athletes wearing their country’s uniforms.

In front of the grandstand, which seated government officials and VIPs, each country’s athletic delegation performed cultural dances that were greeted by cheers from the crowd.

The posting of colors was done by the Marianas High School JROTC and the U.S. and CNMI national anthems were sung by students from Marianas High School and Saipan Southern High School.

Mini Games Organizing Committee chair Marco Peter welcomed and thanked everyone for coming and for all the sponsors who made the games possible. Pacific Mini Games president Vidhya Lakhan lauded the CNMI in hosting the Mini Games despite all the struggles of the past typhoons and the COVID-19 pandemic. Gov. Ralph DLG Torres then welcomed the crowd and declared the opening of the games.

The torch relay and lighting of the torch was done by CNMI athletes who passed the flame from one to another in stages.

The crowd’s attention then turned to the center of the track and field where the Chamorro Ensemble, Uraali, Talabwogh Women, Talabwogh Men, and the Refaluwasch Warriors performed traditional and cultural dances.

Finally, everyone in attendance and those watching online were treated to the first ever drone show in the CNMI that featured the symbols of all the nine sports that will be played in the Games: va’a, beach volleyball, baseball, badminton, triathlon, tennis, golf, weightlifting, and athletics, along with the symbolic latte stone and star in the NMI flag, a traditional proa, and the symbol for the Northern Marianas Pacific Mini Games 2022.

The opening ceremony was personally witnessed by hundreds of people and by thousands more who watched it livestreamed online. The slew of vehicles going to the Oleai sports complex created a miles-long stretch of traffic along the southbound side of Beach Road.