Sakovich revisits old stomping grounds

Less than a month after saying adieu, Saipan Swim Club founder Bill Sakovich found himself back on the islands’ warm embrace in late July when he helped organize the 2nd Annual Escape from Managaha Island.

Okay it might not have been as warm a welcome as the now Hilo, Hawaii resident would’ve hoped for—what with Typhoon Tingting lashing out her fury on the Marianas—but for Sakovich it was still great to be back home.

Sakovich said since packing up his bags and leaving Saipan last May 30, he has been quite busy serving as consultant for the International Olympic Committee.

His first stop was Kosrae in the Federated States of Micronesia and then he moved on to the Marshalls Islands – initially in Majuro and then on Kwajelein.

Sakovich said he tried to help jumpstart a national sports body in Kosrae. He said he hopes the island would pattern it after the Commonwealth’s Northern Marianas Amateur Sports Association.

“They have some organized sports on the island but nothing near any organizational body to tie them all together. We basically had to get the leaders of each sport to come and meet to chart Kosrae’s sports program,” he said.

Going around the island, Sakovich noted that basketball, tennis, and track and field were the favorite sports. He also said that Kosrae’s local government is planning to build a track and field facility sometime in the near future.

The two-week trip to Kosrae funded by the IOC and FSM’s National Olympic Committee ended with Sakovich and the island’s sports leaders coming up with a sports calendar for the rest of the year.

He said he expects to come back to Kosrae in eight months time to update IOC and the FSM-NOC on the progress of his efforts.

In Majuro, Sakovich said he saw a sports program a little better than that of Kosrae but still years behind that of the CNMI.

He said the leaders of the Marshall Islands are scrambling their resources to get a tentative okay to join the Olympic movement, which they finally expect to get during the Athens Games. With the approval, Marshallese athletes could participate in the next Olympics in Beijing.

During his stay in Majuro, he together with Rick Blas of the Guam NOC tried to reinforce the idea of setting up a stronger national sports association for the Marshall Islands.

Sakovich said swimming seems to be a very popular sport in Kwajeilin, site of the islands’ only swimming pool, while basketball, softball and baseball are widely played throughout the rest of the isles.

Returning to Saipan four days before the July 11 Escape, Sakovich said he missed the island despite being away by only a few weeks. He said during the short time he left, he has already seen the strides made by his successor Michael Stewart in the SSC.

“Mike has done a terrific job. Not only are the kids buying into his program, they have also dropped their times and are getting better. I always was in the impression that Saipan is really lucky to get someone in the caliber of Mike to takeover from me. He will only make the SSC better,” he said.

Coming back to his old stomping grounds also allowed Sakovich to touch base with old friends and update them on he and his wife Jean’s move to Hilo. In fact, he said they are starting to get back into the groove of things and even participated in an open water swim recently, with Bill finishing third and Jean fifth in their age groups.

Sakovich said he expects to be back on Saipan before the end of the year.

For some people, you could never really stay away from home even if you’ve left it.