Tough rookie season for Tan

Tania Tan races in the 2019 Metropolitan Cross Country Championship at the Van
Cortlandt Park in New York. (Fordham University)

Micronesian Regional Championship gold medalist Tania Tan acknowledged and welcomed a challenging rookie season with Fordham University’s cross-country team in the National Collegiate Athletic Association Division I

“My freshman season was good. It was a bit tough at first, because I had to get used to the trainings, as we ran more miles and faster paces than I’m used to (which resulted to me getting injured toward the end of cross country in the fall). But I had fun and I’m glad it gave me a challenge,” said Tan, who counted competing in about seven or eight events for the Rams in the fall and spring seasons.

Of these races, Tan saved the best for last, as she posted a personal best time when she participated in the Armory College Indoor Track Meet held at the Armory Track & Field Center in New York, New York in February this year.

“It was my first time running on an indoor track and I set a new personal record in the one-mile race,” said Tan, who won the 3,000m and 5,000m events in the 2018 Micronesian Regional Championship that took place on Saipan.

She completed the race in 6:02.33 and though the CNMI does not keep records in indoor events, Northern Marianas Athletics secretary general Robin Sapong acknowledged that Tan’s mark was a fast time.

Tania Tan, third right, joins her Fordham University teammates as they head out to the course during the 2019 Fordham Fiasco/Ed Joyce Memorial held at the Van Cortlandt Park in New York. (Fordham University)

A few months before her record debut in an indoor track meet, the 2018 Northern Marianas Sports Association/Tan Siu Lin Foundation Female Student Athlete of the Year joined the Rams in the ECAC/IC4A Cross Country Championship at Van Cortlandt Park in Bronx.

“It was the most memorable event in my first year with the team because it was our last cross country meet of the season held at the end of November and cross country is a long season (from August to November). That race was also the most challenging because I was injured, but I insisted on running, so I had to push through the pain and run,” the Saipan International School graduate said.

Despite her handicap, Tan still finished the five-mile course with a respectable time (23:57) and later joined the Rams’ farewell celebration for the team’s senior members.

Tan and company also ended the fall season by earning academic recognitions from the U.S. Track & Field Cross Country Coaches Association. The Rams were one of the eight Atlantic 10 schools to have both their men’s and women’s teams qualified for the All-Academic distinction (cumulative GPA of 3.0 on a 4.0 scale, including the most recent grading period). Fordham had the second-highest GPA among the women’s teams at 3.62, just slightly behind Virginia Commonwealth University (3.65). The Fordham men topped the field with a 3.31 team GPA.

After completing her freshman season, Tan is looking forward to suiting up for the Rams anew.

“I want to continue to train hard and get faster, break my PRs, and have fun,” she said.