Mami returns, chooses 10K race

Mamiko, right, and Joshua Berger, are all smiles after completing the 10K race in last Saturday’s 2017 Saipan Marathon. (Roselyn B. Monroyo)

Micronesian Games gold medalist Mamiko Berger opted to do the 10K race in last Saturday’s 2017 Saipan Marathon and made it to the podium after ranking first in her age group and second overall in the women’s division.

Berger, who gave the CNMI the gold medals in the 5K and 10K events during the 2010 Micronesian Games in Palau, timed in at 42:28 in last weekend’s 10K run that marked her first race on Saipan since moving to Bangkok, Thailand with husband Joshua late last year.

“It was one of the toughest runs ever and I didn’t do well. I wanted to go under 40 minutes or try to be right behind Keith,” said Mamiko, referring to men’s division 10K champion and top overall finisher Keith Longuski, who clocked in at 38:42.

The 47-year-old runner, who was the oldest among the Top 6 overall finishers in the women’s division, did the a half marathon event in Bangkok a few months before she and Joshua returned to the island to participate in the 2017 Saipan Marathon.

“Josh and I joined the Bangkok International Half Marathon and I was the 14th female out of 1,100 and it was super fun to run with all those invited African super runners. My 10K, as I said earlier was very tough for me and I need to work on so many things. Luckily, I got much appreciative advice from Keith, Noriko Jim and the 10K female winner from Japan, who is a semi pro runner as well as a running coach, after the race,” Mamiko said.

Japan’s Tomoe Yokoyama and Jim, who ruled the 10K for so many years, clocked in at 42:03 and 46:07, respectively, to rank first and third. Yokoyama earned her third straight 10K win in the Saipan Marathon. Rounding out the Top 6 were Japan’s Midori Nakada (50:15) and Saipan’s Ayumi Kaga (50:15) and Ayano Braxton (51:27).

Mamiko, who were greeted by her Saipan friends and co-runners at the finish line, said she will run more 10K races when she gets back to Bangkok to get use to the short/middle distance events.

“Basically, I have been a long distance runner for ages and did not know how to prepare for the short distance and my legs and heart were not ready for it. I will stick on 10K races for a while and I will join as many 10K or 5K races as possible in Bangkok, since there are always races every weekend. We will come back on Saipan and run again,” said Mamiko, who also recorded wins in both the full and ultra marathon events here.

Meanwhile, Longuski was the lone runner to complete the 10K race under 40 minutes, as Korean and runner-up Yeseoh Oh checked in at the 43:19 mark. Japan’s Akira Yoshimura (43:38) and Kosuke Sato (44:15), Korea’s Min Soo Kim (44:58) , and Saipan’s Eun Syu Hahn (45:29) also made it to the Top 6 overall in the men’s divisions.

In the age group competition, Saipan’s Rintaro Miyawaki topped the U14 division after posting 45:35, while other first place finishers were 15 to 19’s Haruya Eda (49:21), 20 to 29’s Huiyun Kim (1:07:26), 30 to 39’s Shinobu Ohida (48:02), 40 to 49’s Harumitsu Ono (46:33), 50 to 59’s Ariel Lansangan (50:24), and over 60’s Steven Pixley (49:24).

In the women’s divisions, the age group champions were U14’s Mayiah Duenas (1:12:27), 15 to 19’s Yangzhou Su (1:05:21), 20 to 29’s Andrea Hofschneider (57:07), 30 to 39’s Claire Devey (54:27), 40 to 49’s Claire Grove (54:27), 50 to 59’s Amalia Harris (54:56), and over 60’s Masako Uyama (1:02:48).

The 10K course had runners going to Beach Road (across Char Store near the Saipan Mayor’s Office) and back to the starting/finish line at Micro Beach.