Marianas Ekiden ‘23 relay on Feb. 18

From left, captain Chong Nam Lee, Michael Denevan, Ayano Braxton, and Lily Muldoon of Team Run Saipan topped the competitive division of the Inaugural Marianas Ekiden from Micro Beach in Garapan to just before Pacific Islands Club Saipan in San Antonio and back held last February. (MARK RABAGO)

The third installment of the Marianas Ekiden ‘23 relay race is set for Feb. 18 at 5:30am, which will run through the 21-kilometer official Saipan Half Marathon course from the Micro Beach in Garapan to the Pacific Islands Club Saipan in San Antonio and back.

This year’s race will go back to its original format in 2021 in which participants who register on race roster as individual runners will be put into a lottery and be assigned in a team of a total of four participants. 

In teams of four, each runner will complete one of the four stages of 5K, 5K, 5K, and 6K in order, totaling the distance of a half marathon. It is not just a test of speed, but also of tactics, as you determine who is best suited to complete each leg. 

 Run Saipan president Edward Dela Cruz Jr. said, “We are only going to take up to 60 runners, which will be 15 teams. This year, we made participant T-shirts and we know people will love them… We will be flipping every year from medals to shirts. Last year there were medals and this year there are T-shirts.”

Basically, Dela Cruz said since 2023 is an odd number year, the format will be a random lottery team format and T-shirt prize, while even number years will be medals and self-made team format.

Follow the official Facebook page Run Saipan, which Run Saipan will hold the first officially broadcasted Mariana’s Ekiden Draft on February 15 at 6pm. People will be assigned to Ekiden Teams 1 to 15.

Register on https://raceroster.com/events/2023/70371/marianas-ekiden-23

Team Run Saipan won the Marianas Ekiden ‘22, which was led by team captain and barefoot runner Chong Nam Lee and with Lily Muldoon, Michael Denevan, and Ayano Braxton. They finished the run in 1:32:38 to win the competitive division.

Braxton, Muldoon, and Denevan each tackled the first 5K increments of the race before Lee anchored the team by finishing the 6K part.

Saipan International School ’22 was the only other team entered in the competitive division with skipper Rex Pixley, Tiana Cabrera, Jesse Sablan, and Serin Chung crossing the finish line in 1:46:45.

In the non-competitive division, Team KNAS4 actually had the fastest time and topped the non-competitive division with a time of 1:29.11.

Captain Kasuke Sato said his team was supposed to enter the competitive division, but their other female runner, Akiko Miller, was indisposed. Miller was replaced by Taro Goto and the rest of the team was made up of Shuji Kuroda and Noriko Jim.

Coming in second in the non-competitive division was Running Bikers of captain Floro Derexes, Edgar Abalos, Ronald Villafria, and Arvin Velasco with a time of 1:47:38.

Third in the non-competitive division was the all-women’s team of Run Saipan Pacemakers led by skipper Rosemarie Chisato with members Evelyn Pangelinan, Jessica Ortizo, and Ann Bang. They finished the race in 1:51:49.

A total of 12 teams took part in the face-to-face version of the Inaugural Marianas Ekiden with other teams opting for the virtual option.

The rest of the teams that joined the non-competitive division are Marianas Ekiden 2 in 1:57:02 (Robyn Spaeth, Kathy Ruszala, Michael Mancao, and Simon Necesito), Arguably Descent in 1:58:11 (Brad Ruszala, Trey Dunn, Travis Spaeth, and Robby Glass), Marianas Ekiden 1 in 2:02:02 (Denise Myers, Sildrey Veloria, Moji De Luna, and Kurt Songsong), Go Extra Mile in 2:26:50 (Eric Abragan, Sharon Abragan, Christian Joseph Yap, and Laarni Zapanta), GXM ENC in 2:28:58 (Daryll De Luna, Jedidiah Peteru, Dylon Deleon Guerrero, and Duncan Laxa), Scrambled Legs in 2:29:47 (Margie Camu, Nicole Delon Guerrero, Limuel Bernal, and Aaron Pamintuan), and GXM Jr. in 3:07:57 (Barbara Peteru, Heart Mariell De Luna, Alyssa Omampo, and Alan Peteru).