{"id":338144,"date":"2021-02-09T06:06:31","date_gmt":"2021-02-08T20:06:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.saipantribune.com\/?p=338144"},"modified":"2021-02-09T06:06:31","modified_gmt":"2021-02-08T20:06:31","slug":"super-bowl-tradition-continues-amid-pandemic","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.saipantribune.com\/index.php\/super-bowl-tradition-continues-amid-pandemic\/","title":{"rendered":"Super Bowl tradition continues amid pandemic"},"content":{"rendered":"
A MARPAC staff in mask talks to one of the spectators at the Super Bowl LV party at the Hyatt Ballroom of the Hyatt Regency Saipan yesterday morning. (Roselyn B. Monroyo)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Jacob Villagomez did not know if establishments on Saipan\u2019s will be hosting Super Bowl LV parties.<\/p>\n

They did and Villagomez and hundreds of football fans on island who spent their Monday morning watching Tom Brady and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers dethrone the Kansas Chiefs were thankful for the opportunity to continue their annual tradition.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ve been watching the Super Bowl for nearly two decades and this year I thought we won\u2019t able to watch it with my friends. It\u2019s only a few days ago that I and my friends found out that there will be Super Bowl shows on island and we\u2019re very fortunate to have this opportunity,\u201d said Villagomez.<\/p>\n

Tampa Bay Buccaneers fans celebrate after their team scored a touchdown in the second quarter against the Kansas City Chiefs. (Roselyn B. Monroyo)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The San Vicente resident watched the Super Bowl LV at the Hyatt Ballroom of the Hyatt Regency Saipan where nearly 40 gridiron fans witnessed Brady lead the Bucs to a 31-9 rout of the Chiefs.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe could have hosted more people if not for the pandemic and the restrictions in place. But, we\u2019re sold out in all our hosted bars and establishments and we\u2019re very pleased with the turnout and happy for football fans that their able continue this tradition,\u201d said Guy Pudney, resident manager of MARPAC, which sponsored the Super Bowl party at Hyatt and four other bars\/restaurants on island.<\/p>\n

Former CNMI football player and coach John Blanco said the Super Bowl LV party gave him the chance to enjoy watching the sport dear to him with his friends and fellow gridiron fans, again and he thanked the Governor\u2019s COVID-19 Task Force for making this opportunity or even \u201cluxury\u201d possible.<\/p>\n

Jacob Villagomez, left, poses for a photo with MARPAC\u2019s James Lee after winning a raffle prize during the Super Bowl LV party at the Hyatt Ballroom of the Hyatt Regency Saipan yesterday. (Roselyn B. Monroyo)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\u201cWe have the pandemic under control so we are able to hold events like this and we have the task force to thank for and all the people working hard to make sure that we are safe here,\u201d Blanco said.<\/p>\n

Governor\u2019s COVID-19 Task Force chair Warren Villagomez was also among the attendees in the Super Bowl LV party at the Hyatt and commended the community for cooperating with the government\u2019s call to practice safety measures to prevent the spread of the virus.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re very fortunate that at this time of the pandemic we\u2019re able to have events like this. That\u2019s because of our front-liners and government leaders who are working to ensure our safety and of course the entire community for following safety protocols. Please continue to be vigilant and follow the 3 Ws\u2014wash your hands, wear your masks, and watch your distance,\u201d Villagomez said.<\/p>\n

Villagomez also appealed to the community to participate in the CNMI\u2019s COVID-19 vaccination program.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Jacob Villagomez did not know if establishments on Saipan\u2019s will be hosting Super Bowl LV…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":29,"featured_media":338149,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[1613],"class_list":["post-338144","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-sports","tag-super-bowl"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.saipantribune.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/338144","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.saipantribune.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.saipantribune.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.saipantribune.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/29"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.saipantribune.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=338144"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.saipantribune.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/338144\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.saipantribune.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/338149"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.saipantribune.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=338144"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.saipantribune.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=338144"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.saipantribune.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=338144"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}