Run From ’22 participants pose for a photo at the former Mariana Resort on Saturday.
KEITH Ketola and Tania Tan successfully defended their titles as the fastest runners in the annual one-mile race hosted by Run Saipan on Saturday morning.
This year’s challenge, Run From ’22, was quite unique as it was a downhill race that stretched from the Buddhist Temple to the finish line at the former Mariana Resort.
Keither Ketola, Dev Bachani and Heimanarii Lai pose on the podium with their medals during the Run From ’22 awards ceremony on Saturday. Also in photo: Tania Tan and Run Saipan officers.
Keith Ketola, last year’s top male runner, was the first to cross the finish line with a time of 00:04:14.
“I feel good — it was a lot of fun,” he said. “They set up a downhill course and you know that takes off at least 10 seconds off your time. So, I know everyone ran their [personal records] today. This is the fastest I’ve run in five years. It’s challenging because it’s faster than most.”
Following behind were Dev Bachani with a time of 00:04:53 and Heimanarii Lai San who clocked 00:04:55.
Women’s division
In the women’s division, Tania Tan retained her title with a finish time of 00:05:06.
Tania Tan, Sharon Hawley and Tiana Cabrera pose on the podium with their medals during the Run From ’22 awards ceremony on Saturday. Also in photo: Run Saipan officers.
“I feel good; I just came here to run for fun and support Run Saipan,” she said. “I’ve never ran a course that was just downhill. It was so fast, but overall, I liked it! It’s good to have a [personal record]. I’m a long-distance runner so running a mile is definitely shorter but it’s good to work on speed as well.”
In second place was Sharon Hawley with a time of 00:05:24, followed by Tiana Cabrera in third with a time of 00:06:03.
