Li, Ketola, Wang win 800m, 1,600m

Runners of the 200m sprint including first place Theodore Rodgers, third from right, are seen during Day 2 of the Northern Marianas Athletics Track and Field Challenge held at the Oleai Sports Complex. (LEIGH GASES)

Daniel Li won the 800m, while Keith Ketola and Barbara Wang topped the 1,600m; and in the 100m and 200m sprints, Zarinae Sapong and Theodore Rodgers sprinted the fastest during the Northern Marianas Athletics Track and Field Challenge held last Friday and Saturday at the Oleai Sports Complex.

In the 800m race last Saturday, Daniel Li, a 16-year-old from Agape Christian School, raced against four other high school students and clocked in the fastest with a time of 2:28.3. He was followed by Jacky Liu with a time of 2:36.6; third was Jireh Wang with 2:39.1; James Fan came in at 2:41.4; and Juke Chen came in at 2:58.8.

In Friday’s 1,600m, Keith Ketola topped the men’s open with a time of 4:56, besting 14 other runners. Dev Bachani came in second with a time of 5:05 and Jacky Liu clocked in third at 5:19. 

Barbara Wang won first place in the women’s open 1,600m race clocking in at 6:44. She was followed by Eunice Wu with a time of 6:56 and Eunice Xu’s time of 7:11.

Zarinae Sapong is still the fastest woman on the track as she came in first in the women’s open 200m sprint that was held last Friday with a time of 28:72; Sapong came in first again in the 100m sprint held on Saturday with a time of 13:78.

Second to Sapong in the 200m sprint was Casey Cruz with a time of 29:33 and third was Bernadette Horey with a time of 31:00; second in the 100m sprint was Maria Igitol with a time of 14:72.

Theodore Rodgers, a 16-year-old from Grace Christian Academy, crossed the finish line first in the men’s open 100m with a time of 11:82 and in the 200m sprint with a time of 24:59.

After Rodgers in the 100m sprint was Alexander Camacho with a time of 12:00, followed by Kaipo Dikito with a time of 13:15.

Second in the 200m sprint was Cody Shimizu with a time of 25:41 and third was Caleb Cui at 26:45.

Li told Saipan Tribune after the race, “I feel like I could run better. Since July when I came here, I’ve been running. In China, I was in the track and field team, and here [at ACS], I am in the cross country team.”

Ketola, who recently won the Turkey Trot, said this time around at the track, “I had a great time competing in the track and field challenge held by the athletics federation. I want to thank the federation and Mr. Robin Sapong for taking the time to organize it.”

The 26-year-old Run Saipan club member added that the 1,600m is his “best track distance.”

“The race was exciting, as some of the high school competitors started very fast, probably running the first 200m in around 30 seconds. I knew I just had to stay patient and try to run consistently. I was happy with my performance and I want to thank and congratulate everyone who participated and made the event memorable. ​​I’m looking forward to upcoming races like the Christmas Island Relay and the New Year’s 1-Mile Race held by Run Saipan.”

Rodgers, who practices twice a week said that “the conditions on both days were good; on Saturday that was a bit more windy… In the beginning, I came into it pretty scared because I haven’t been in a real race since the [Pacific] Mini Games; also not really knowing the other runner’s times made me nervous,” but when he won first place, he said “it felt good to see the training pay off.”

Sapong, on being the fastest sprinter again, said “it was a fun meet, I’m just happy to get some runs in during the off season. Excited for the coming season next year. ​​There’s a lot of time going into building my strength back. As a team we work on plyometrics and form drills. I hope to run a new personal best next year.”