GIFF JOHNSON
Marshall Islands sports men and women turned in many outstanding performances in the early days of the Micronesian Games starting this past Saturday.
It kicked off with RMI women’s basketball team winning the RMI’s first medal of the Games, a bronze in the 3×3 basketball tournament, last Sunday afternoon. Winning the bronze for RMI were basketball players Angela Masao, Berlin Philippo, Eskella Joseph and Mimo Jacklik.
Monday launched numerous other sports, with RMI weightlifters turning in strong showings in a sport long dominated by our neighbors from Nauru. RMI’s youngest weightlifter, Vinete Torejak, 11, came away with two silver medals in the 45kg (99 pound) weight category, while RMI’s most medaled and experienced lifter, Mattie Sasser Miller, walked away with three gold medals, all on Monday. Numerous other RMI weightlifters won medals Monday and Tuesday at the ICC.
President Hilda Heine was on hand to put the medals on Mattie after the winning performance. They were joined by Australian Ambassador Paul Wilson. The Australian government is supporting Mattie’s participation in the upcoming Olympic Games in Paris, her second Olympic appearance. She represented the Marshall Islands at the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro.
RMI women’s softball team was ready Monday, defeating the CNMI team 5-1. It followed this with a 16-3 trouncing of Palau Tuesday at the Jenrok baseball field. The women were set to play their third game against Pohnpei Wednesday late afternoon as the Journal was going to press.
The RMI swim team grabbed 10 medals in the first three days of competition on Kwajalein that was dominated by CNMI swimmers in many of the events. RMI swimmers won one gold, four silver and five bronze medals through day three.
While Team Guam men and women rolled in the 3×3 basketball tournament, a shock for the Guam men’s team and spectators alike was the 38-38 tie score with Team Chuuk with under a minute to play Tuesday night at the ECC gym. Seeing the opportunity for an unexpected upset of the powerhouse Team Guam, the ECC gym crowd was raucous in their support of Team Chuuk. Only one island team has ever defeated Guam men in Micronesian basketball play: Team Palau upset Guam at the Outrigger Micronesian Basketball Tournament in Majuro in 2000.
Guam players came through with clutch baskets and defense in the final seconds to win 42-38.
RMI women lost a heartbreaker in their opening basketball game with Team Chuuk 47-46. The RMI squad missed numerous free throws down the stretch and Chuuk held onto its slim lead to win. On Tuesday, RMI women bounced back against Nauru, winning 50-41. RMI player Mylie Wugumgeg, who stepped off the United flight Tuesday morning was on the court in the afternoon, helping lead the RMI team to victory.
RMI men won their first two basketball games easily, defeating Nauru 71-27 Monday and Yap 80-39 Tuesday. The men’s team was scheduled to play Palau Thursday at 4:30pm and Kosrae at 7:30pm Friday. The women begin playoff games Thursday evening 6:00 and 7:30pm and Friday at 1:30pm. Four medal games are scheduled for Sunday starting from 1:30pm, with the women’s gold game at 5:30pm and the men’s at 7:30pm.
Table tennis was running Wednesday through Friday at ICC; wrestling will happen at ICC Saturday and Sunday before moving to a beach wrestling format at the Jenrok track on Monday. Micronesian all-around and spearfishing were in progress at mid-week.
Athletics opens Thursday morning at 9am with hammer throws, and then men and women 400 meter dash. The preliminaries then continue from 4pm with the last event scheduled for 8:25pm. Friday’s competition starts from 4:30pm with finals in high jump, javelin throw and long jump. These continue with finals for 400 meters, 4 x 400 and 4 x 100 relay races, and many others through 7:15pm.
Saturday 10k races start at 6am, while the rest of the finals for races and field events kick off from 5pm at the Jenrok track.