Athletics ready for Mini Games

Majority of the athletes preparing to compete in the 2005 Palau South Pacific Mini Games will be battling for supremacy in various track and field events, and determined to shoulder the CNMI’s push are Darrel Roligat and Dexter Dillay.

Roligat will compete in the 100m and 200m sprints, while Dillay will focus on the long jump, and will also see action in several sprint events. The two will be accompanied by coaches Elias Rangamar and Chris Porco.

As reported earlier, Roligat is currently competing in the IAAF World Youth Championships in Morocco, and according to Rangamar, the experience will only produce positive results in terms of preparing for the Mini Games.

“It’s definitely good for him going into [Mini Games],” Rangamar said. “He competes against his age…those kids are a lot faster than the guys at the Mini Games. Also, for him to meet some of the veteran athletes through sessions with them…that’s the one I think Darrel will observe a lot of and I’m pretty sure it will help him in the SPG and the world Championships.”

As for Dillay, the 20-year-old former middle-distance runner continues to put in countless hours of work at the Oleai Sports Complex.

Despite fighting through a “nagging” injury, Rangamar said Dillay’s training is progressing well.

Rangamar reiterated that high expectations such as medaling or becoming finalists in their respective events are not expected of the two youngsters, instead, he is optimistic both would return to home soil with CNMI National records on hand.

“For both of them, we’re looking at national records or personal best performances,” Rangamar said. “I can’t be over optimistic because they’re still young. In terms of training age in the sport, they’re new with track and field.”

Nonetheless, Rangamar said the two possess the desire to give their all in hopes of representing the Commonwealth the best they could.

“We’re definitely ready,” he said. “They’re the two best we got right now and they’re going to make the best of this experience.”

Still, Rangamar stressed the need for more competitions prior to events such as the Mini Games.

“I think we’ve progressed pretty well, but again, we’re always lacking that competition to sharpen them before the meet,” he said, citing that athletes from other countries such as Fiji and French Polynesia, among others, are exposed to a handful of competitions before “their big one.”

“It’s like basketball or baseball, they have preseason games…that’s what we’re lacking. All they do is train then go to competition. But actually you need at least 12 weeks of competition before you actually get ready for that big meet. We’re not fortunate to have that type of competition, but we’ll try our best,” Rangamar said.

As for the records, Roligat has already begun to prove his capabilities, recently shattering the CNMI junior record by completing the 100m in 11.4 seconds at the Youth Championships, the second fastest time posted in the event by anyone in the NMI.

For his part, Dillay has been showcasing his explosiveness and has shattered the national record in the long jump during several practice jumps.

“So far, unofficially he has broken our national record,” Rangamar said of Dillay. “Those are just during practices, though. Dexter has already jumped over 6.30 [meters], so I’m really hoping that with the competition and the drive, I’m looking at him to maybe do 6.4 or 6.5, hopefully more.

The record is currently held by Cedric Frazer, who leaped for 6.15 meters.

One thing for sure, the two youngsters have time on their hands and have officials working at their best in hopes of providing as much exposure to regional and international competitions.

Also, Rangamar stressed that the summer Games will be beneficial to the progress of the two athletes as they also prepare for the Micro Cup in December, which will be held on Saipan and will feature top guns from the region.