Left photo, Kiyoshi Sekiguchi, director of international department for Shonan Bellmare, talks to the players training under the Junior National Academy at the NMI Soccer Training Center on Monday. Right photo shows Sekiguchi with NMI Football Association acting technical director Konomi Suzuki and NMIFA coaching staff member Jireh Yobech during a visit at the facility in Koblerville.
THIS summer, the CNMI will welcome Shonan Bellmare, a girls U14 soccer team that will hold a two-week training camp here.
Shonan Bellmare is a Japanese football club based in Hiratsuka, Kanagawa Prefecture, just south of Tokyo. It has a professional team that plays in the J-1 League, the top tier football league in Japan. Its age group squads compete in many leagues across Japan year-round, including the Kanagawa Prefecture Women’s Soccer League Division 1 and the Japan Football Association’s All Japan Women’s Soccer Championship.
“Our girls U14 team trains three times a week and plays in official matches on weekends in the different leagues across Japan. For the offseason in summer, we are looking into coming to Saipan for a training camp,” said Kiyoshi Sekiguchi, director of the international department of Shonan Bellmare.
Sekiguchi is no stranger to the NMI, as he used to be the technical director of the NMI Football Association and the head coach of the NMI national team.
“It’s good to be back and work on establishing this partnership with the NMI, through the NMIFA, and bring our young players here,” said Sekiguchi, who met with NMIFA President Jerry Tan Monday to discuss the training camp and other activities of the group.
Warm people, rich culture and history
Segikuchi said Shonan Bellmare’s visit to Saipan this summer will be more than just football, and he is excited for their players who will experience island hospitality and the rich culture and history of its people.
“One thing that sets apart the Northern Mariana Islands from other [jurisdictions] is its people. The people in the NMI are very warm and hospitable and I can speak from my many years of experience here,” said Sekiguchi, who coached the NMI team from 2010 to 2012 and 2014 to 2017.
Besides training and having friendlies against NMI players, Sekiguchi said they look forward to visiting schools, getting involved in community service, having homestays, and touring historic sites.
“The NMI and Japan share a lot of history and I look forward to our young team learning more about it and how the island and our country are able to develop strong ties,” Sekiguchi said.
He said Shonan Bellmare also aims to compete overseas, so it is important for them to learn other languages for better communication.
“Our first step is to get our girls U14 team here and then later on we could plan for other squads and include in the activities having English tutorials. This [language] and cultural exchange is important in developing not just the skills of our players, but also their character. They need to see and experience the difference between Japan and the NMI or other countries and learn from it as they move forward to the next level of their football career,” the 55-year-old official said.
Much needed boost to tourism
NMIFA President Jerry Tan said the partnership with Shonan Bellmare is good news not only to NMI football, but for the islands’ tourism promotion as well.
“Last Saturday, we had a lot of Japanese tourists that joined the Saipan Marathon. We also had a group of university/college students [from the University Network for Global Leadership Development who were here for] cultural exchange and some sports activities. Marianas High School hosted more than 100 students and teachers from Seisa High School last month. This summer, we will have Shonan Bellmare. These are all welcome news for us, as we work on bringing back more Japanese tourists. Japan has been a strong partner of NMI tourism for decades and we must capitalize on the opportunities to host groups and offer them a variety of activities to bring the Japanese market back,” said Tan, who also heads the Northern Marianas Sports Association.
He said having well-maintained facilities will support the NMI’s efforts in attracting more visitors to the islands.
Sekiguchi on Monday visited the NMI Soccer Training Center and the Oleai Sports Complex, and said they are capable of hosting sports and related activities.
“The last time I was at the NMISTC [in 2019], there was only one main pitch. Now, you have two plus the training room. The soccer pitch at the Oleai Sports Complex is also a good alternate venue for soccer games and I have a lot of good memories there as well as the school fields at Hopwood and Koblerville. There have been significant improvements in the facilities in the NMI and I look forward to bringing our young players to these facilities to train and hold other activities,” Sekuguchi said.
