ZARINAE Sapong, the NMI’s 2021 Female Athlete of the Year, has been selected to represent the Northern Marianas in the World Athletics Championships from July 15-to 24 at the University of Oregon.
She will be compete in the 100m event of the championships which will be taking place in the U.S. for the very first time.
“Running in front of our home crowd at the Pacific Mini Games was exhilarating,” she said in an interview with Variety. “I was able to compete as an ambassador of the NMI among other islands and countries of the Pacific. I am also grateful to have been selected to participate in the World Athletics Championships. To be granted another opportunity to represent the NMI on a global stage is a tremendous honor,” she added.
Sapong has already competed against some of the Pacific region’s best athletes, but “the competitors I will be facing [in Oregon] are world class athletes. The caliber of athleticism is incredible. Some of them are running sub 11 times daily.”
She added, “I’m going to be running alongside Olympic champions and record holders from across the globe so it’s both humbling and inspiring to be able to witness greatness at such close proximity.”
Each member federation of the World Athletics family was asked to select just one athlete for the Athletics World Championships. Northern Marianas Athletics coaches nominated Sapong to represent the NMI.
Coach Elias Rangamar, who will accompany Sapong in Oregon, said: “Zarinae was the [NMI’s] top sprinter from the recent Pacific Mini Games. She is just aiming to get a [personal best record] and break the elusive 13 seconds that she was trying to break before the pandemic happened.”
Zarinae Sapong pushes through the Women’s 4×100 metro relay event of the 2022 Pacific Mini Games 2022 on June 24, 2022 at the Oleai Sports Complex.
