{"id":371018,"date":"2022-06-23T06:06:53","date_gmt":"2022-06-22T20:06:53","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.saipantribune.com\/?p=371018"},"modified":"2022-06-23T06:06:53","modified_gmt":"2022-06-22T20:06:53","slug":"angel-gives-cnmi-two-more-golds","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.saipantribune.com\/index.php\/angel-gives-cnmi-two-more-golds\/","title":{"rendered":"Angel gives CNMI two more golds"},"content":{"rendered":"
<\/a>
The CNMI\u2019s Angel San Nicolas poses with his four gold medals while holding a giant cutout of his head eating an ice cream sandwich after the end of the 102-kg class of the weightlifting competition of the Northern Marianas Pacific Mini Games 2022 yesterday at the Marianas High School Gymnasium. (MARK RABAGO)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Angel San Nicolas can\u2019t stop shaking his head as he\u2019s about to receive his clean & jerk and total weight gold medals in the 102-kg class of the weightlifting event of the Northern Marianas Pacific Games 2022 yesterday at the Marianas High School Gymnasium.<\/p>\n

The special education teacher at Francisco Mendiola Sablan Middle School said he really wasn\u2019t expecting to win a gold medal\u2014much less two\u2014and that\u2019s the reason he couldn\u2019t believe his good fortune.<\/p>\n

\u201cHonestly, I came to the competition expecting just to do well. That\u2019s it. I was really nervous and for the most part the last three days has been really hard. Not just pressure but expectation. Most of my competitions took place outside of [the CNMI] and I prefer it that way. This is actually my first time performing to my best in front of my home. It\u2019s not a preference to be honest as I prefer to compete overseas. There\u2019s just less pressure competing off-island that\u2019s why.\u201d
\n

<\/a>
The CNMI\u2019s Leo Apelo in action in the 89-kg class of the weightlifting competition of the Northern Marianas Pacific Mini Games 2022 yesterday at the Marianas High School Gymnasium. (MARK RABAGO)<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/p>\n

Whatever jitters the 29-year-old had disappeared come game time as he missed the gold in the snatch by only 1 kg after lifting 119 kg in his second attempt. He, however, more than made up for it with a lift of 160 kg in his third and final try in the clean & jerk. Moments before, he actually already secured the clean & jerk and total weight gold when he lifted 155 kg in his second try.<\/p>\n

\u201cI already secured the gold medal in my second attempt in total and clean & jerk. That\u2019s actually my personal best and I\u2019ve done that in training multiple times. I could\u2019ve opted not to take the third attempt, but why not?\u201d<\/p>\n

An emotional San Nicolas dedicated his two gold medals\u2014three if you count the one from the 2022 Oceania Weightlifting Championships\u2014and the silver medal to everyone including his critics.<\/p>\n

\u201cI want to dedicate these medals to everyone who supported me and those who also gave me a hard time. I\u2019m not going to lie ever since for more than year I really had a hard time and it\u2019s not really the physical part it was dealing with people and so much stress and living up to everyone\u2019s expectations. I\u2019m sorry\u2026I just wanna say to anyone I gave a hard time to, I\u2019m sorry. I had to do what I had to do and it\u2019s important for me to be doubted.\u201d<\/p>\n

On the $12,500 windfall he\u2019s expected to get for his two gold medals and a silver, San Nicolas said he wants to get hold of the cash incentive first.<\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t know what I\u2019m going to do but let\u2019s get it first. Let me get it first and I\u2019ll think and decide what I\u2019ll do with it,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

On the $1,000 bonus Gov. Ralph DLG Torres promised for each gold medal, San Nicolas said he would accept that too and even intimated that he\u2019s ready to smoke the peace pipe with the governor. \u201cIf he wants to why not.\u201d<\/p>\n

Earlier, Leo Apelo gave the CNMI three more silver medals after coming in second in the 89-kg class. The 33-year-old Transportation Security Administration officer came in second in the snatch with a lift of 124 kg and finished in the same position in the clean & jerk when he cleared 157 kg.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m proud of it and I really worked hard for it so it\u2019s really good\u2026 Feels great, I can\u2019t complain, and I love the crowd they gave me some energy.\u201d<\/p>\n

Apelo dedicated his three silver medals\u2014including a fourth in the Oceania Weightlifting Championships\u2014to his family and children, who were actually in attendance at the MHS Gym.
\nHe said he\u2019s been into the sport for 10 years now and plans to continue training in weightlifting \u201cuntil my body\u2019s broken.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThese are the most medals I won and in an international competition at that. I only competed before locally, Guam, and in the Micronesian Games,\u201d added Apelo who trains six days a week.<\/p>\n

On the $7,500 incentive not counting the governor\u2019s $1,000 bonus, Apelo joked that it\u2019ll come in handy with everyone\u2019s electricity bill going up. \u201cThe power bill is very high right now so\u2026\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Angel San Nicolas can\u2019t stop shaking his head as he\u2019s about to receive his clean…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":15,"featured_media":371042,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[26],"class_list":["post-371018","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-sports","tag-cnmi"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.saipantribune.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/371018","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\/15"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.saipantribune.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=371018"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.saipantribune.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/371018\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.saipantribune.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/371042"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.saipantribune.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=371018"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.saipantribune.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=371018"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.saipantribune.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=371018"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}