Noriko tops Women’s Run 5K

Recent NMI Sports Hall of Famer inductee Noriko Jim placed first in the 5K event of the 4th Annual NMI Women’s Run held last Saturday.

Jim completed the 5K from the Hyatt Regency Saipan parking lot to Puerto Rico and back with a time of 23:41, She was followed shortly by Kaylen Taflinger who took second place with a 25:02 run. Megumi Takaku Shimada got third with a time of 27:43.

Jim shared with Saipan Tribune that she had not expected to run in the event originally.

“After I had run the recent Saipan Marathon, I had gotten some backaches, body aches, and such. I thought it would be better to relax for a while because I joined the recent half marathon during the Saipan Marathon two weeks ago.”

Jim said that after hearing about the event from her colleagues, she decided she wanted to join the cause and celebrate women.

“I ended up signing up just three days before the event. Anyway, it’s a good morning exercise and something I do normally.”

She shared that she was so happy to see so many women joining the event. She shared that for her, it didn’t matter whether she placed or not as she was just there to have fun and celebrate women.

Jim added that despite the weather, she and everyone kept that smile in their face and showcased a great women’s spirit.

“Before we started it was already looking like it was going to rain as the road was all wet. But it was no problem.”

In a way, last Saturday’s 4th Annual NMI Women’s Run was a testament to how women can persevere and show love and support.

“Yeah, everyone was like passing by smiling and we push and push…I love it when people can see that.”

In the men’s division of the 5K, Sildrey Viloria came in first with a 19:03 run, followed by Pony Tang with a time of 19:30. Jordan Ruiz came in third at 21:04.

The event was organized and sponsored by the Northern Marianas Athletics, Run Saipan, and the Northern Marianas Coalition Against Domestic and Sexual Violence. It was held to celebrate women as part of the 2024 International Women’s Day. This year the event also showed support to those who suffered from domestic violence and sexual abuse.

Kimberlyn King-Hinds was one of the runners that morning and shared her wholehearted support to NMCADSV.

“I am a survivor myself, a sexual assault survivor. I feel that it’s very important to come out and support these events with the hope of raising awareness to the long-lasting impact that sexual assault has on women throughout their lives. I’m a professional and to this day, the post-traumatic stress of my sexual assault is still haunting me.”

The former Commonwealth Port Authority board chairwoman said NMCADSV needs everyone’s support so the 4th Annual NMI Women’s Run was a great way to fundraise for the coalition.

“So, the more people that come out and support events like these, the more awareness we can bring to the community that survivors and victims of assault should be believed. We can’t keep coming out and saying, you know, let’s have a sexual assault proclamation month, right? We actually have to start believing survivors. And what we’re seeing right now in the justice system is that we’re seeing a lot of not guilty. Why? Because of our stereotypes about, you know, how women should respond, right, to their assault, right? So that’s why I’m here…” said King-Hinds.

NMA’s Robin Sapong shared his gratitude to all participants who joined the race as well as fellow sponsors Run Saipan and NMCADSV for their support.”

“On behalf of NMA, we extend our heartfelt gratitude to our partners and stakeholders for their invaluable support in making the NMI Women’s Run 2024 a great success. Your collaboration and dedication have played a crucial role in empowering women and promoting fitness in our community. Thank you for being an integral part of this journey. We hope for a bigger turnout in 2025 as we will celebrate our fifth year.”