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Local triathletes shine down south
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Posted on Mar 17 2006
While members of the Northern Mariana Islands Triathlon Federation continue to prepare for the upcoming XTERRA Saipan Championship and the 17th Tagaman Triathlon next month, a pair of local triathletes took their training overseas in the Guam Isla Triathlon.
Mieko Motoyoshi and Kevin Carey of Pacific Islands Club packed their gear and headed south last week for a Taga-tune-up on the southernmost link in the Marianas Islands Chain, and the duo performed well among the 48 multi-sport mavens from throughout the region.
Motoyoshi was the first female and 10th racer to cross the finish line when she returned to the Merizo Pier after completing the 1.5-kilometer swim, 40-km bike, and 10-km run course in 2:52:56, while Carey was fourth in his division and 12th overall to cross the line at 2:57:30.
Motoyoshi was strong in her first full race since recovering from last year’s injuries as the Clubmate cruised through the swim in 26:38 before cranking out a time of 1:31:15 on the bike. With two legs in the can, Motoyoshi zipped along the six-mile run course in 55:03.
Carey’s run to the finish line was also impressive in his Guam debut as he finished the mile-long swim in 33:04 and hammered out a time of 1:33:06 on the 24 mile bike course before running fast for a 51:20 jaunt to the tape.
Guam Triathlon Federation mainstay Jude Baker was the first overall individual to cross the finish line when he completed the grueling Olympic-distance course 2:29:08, followed by youngster Keenan Tydingco at 2:32:50. The duo will be part of Guam’s delegation to the 6th Micronesian Games, and hopes to make a run at triathlon gold.
In addition to the big name participants from Saipan and Guam who participated in the event, TagaKids graduate and Tagaman finisher Shoki Sakano and his father Kensyo completed the Guam Isla Triathlon to continue the family’s inspirational story with identical times of 4:38:38.
In the past few years, the Sakanos have continued to prove to the world that autism is not an obstacle to the sport of three, and the folks at Taga Inc. as well as NMITF hope to see him on April 8 for the Tagaman.
