By Jay Leon Guerrero
The Guam Track and Field Association will have six athletes competing at 10th Micronesian Games in Majuro, Marshall Islands. Athletics will be looking to bring hardware back home, and each athlete is capable of achieving that goal.
Guam contingent
*Aleah Castro – 100m hurdles, 400m hurdles, 200m, 100m
*Jeofry Limtiaco – 400m hurdles, 400m
*Keira Paz – 5000m, 1500m, 10000m
*Jovan Pineda – 110m hurdles, triple jump, long jump
*Taylor-Ann Santos – 100m, 200m, triple jump, long jump
*Regine Tugade – 100m, 200m, triple jump, long jump
Riza Tugade (official)
The two athletes of the group who participated in the previous Micronesian Games in Yap are Jeofry Limtiaco and Regine Tugade. Tugade won three gold medals at the 9th Micronesian Games and was named the Female Athlete of the Games after breaking the 100-meter dash record twice.
Limtiaco will be defending his gold in the 400-meter hurdles event. This will be Limtiaco’s third Micronesian Games, and he said representing Guam is still an honor and privilege.
The remaining four athletes have recently graduated from high school, and all have the potential to become superstars in the sport for Guam.
Pineda will be focusing on the 110-meter hurdles event and the jumps. Castro, who achieved four gold medals two months ago at the ISA All-Island High School Meet for the GW Geckos, will be running the 100-meter hurdles event and sprinting events.
Paz and Santos just came back from the Oceania Athletics Championships in Fiji, and they are both peaking in their respective events. Paz will be doing the long-distance events, and Santos will be busy with jumping and short distance events.
“One benefit we had going to the Oceania Championships was going against high-level athletes. It helped in preparing me for this upcoming Micronesia Games,” said Paz.
Castro continued to train after the high school season in May and is ready to showcase her skills in Majuro. “I’ve been training on my own, going to the track and the gym,” said Castro.
“I’m excited to compete for Guam at the Micronesian Games. I’m eager to see the competition at the games and see how i perform against them,” said Castro.
Santos also recently competed against high-level competition from the Pacific. Her experience at the Pacific Games (Solomon Islands) and the Oceania Championships (Fiji) sparked a fire in her, and the goal is to bring home a medal for Guam. “Being from Guam and representing the island again is a huge honor. I’m excited to do my best on this stage,” said Santos.
The competition dates for Athletics will be from June 20-23. Guam will also participate in the mixed 4×400 meter relay.
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