
By Kai Akimoto
With the Guam contingent flying out to Samoa to participate in the 2019 Pacfic Games within the next few weeks, the national Men’s Volleyball team has been preparing rigorously to represent the Island against the region’s top volleyball talent. Under head coach, Joel Quitigua, the team is comprised of the most dedicated and passionate members of Guam’s volleyball community.
“Our athletes have to hold full time jobs. A lot of them have to train and take care of a family. So if you see a national team player, go and give them a hug because they really are sacrificing a lot just because they love representing the island,” said coach Joel Quitigua on the challenges that his team faces in preparation for the games.
Although the roster features some members with more than 20 years of experience representing the island, for a majority, this tournament will be a novel experience. All but two players, JP Taimanglo and Eric Ada, have competed in a Pacific Games and a few players have returned home with collegiate experience under their belt, bringing a uniquely refined level of play to the team.
“It is a first experience for many of these guys. Mostly everyone has represented Guam in some sort of international play, but this is at a whole new level. We just want to start putting players through a system that takes them at a young age and primes them for competition. We’re going to be facing teams that come from islands that have populations that are huge. We might have 50 guys come try out for team while an island like Fiji might have like 1000 or so. They have such a large pool of athletes to pull from compared to us,” said Quitigua on how he aims to use the amount of youth on the team.
The training that the team has endured over the past months in preparation for the Pacific Games has been a true test for each of the players. JP Taimanglo, who has represented Guam for 20 years, is eager to be competing with such a young team.
“There’s a lot of commitment needed to represent the Island. But overall, we are contributing to the community by getting exposure to bring our players to the next level and better the talent on the island.”
The veteran Taimanglo posted up for an interview to talk about being the veteran on the really young squad.
PHOTO GALLERY BROUGHT TO YOU BY:




GPS Sports Calendar
January 2021
- SU
- MO
- TU
- WE
- TH
- FR
- SA
- 27
- 28
- 29
- 30
- 31
- 1
- 2
Events for January
1st
Events for January
2nd
- 3
- 4
- 5
- 6
- 7
- 8
- 9
Events for January
3rd
Events for January
4th
Events for January
5th
Events for January
6th
Events for January
7th
Events for January
8th
Events for January
9th
- 10
- 11
- 12
- 13
- 14
- 15
- 16
Events for January
10th
Events for January
11th
Events for January
12th
Events for January
13th
Events for January
14th
Events for January
15th
Events for January
16th
- 17
- 18
- 19
- 20
- 21
- 22
- 23
Events for January
17th
Events for January
18th
Events for January
19th
Events for January
20th
Events for January
21st
Events for January
22nd
Events for January
23rd
- 24
- 25
- 26
- 27
- 28
- 29
- 30
Events for January
24th
Events for January
25th
Events for January
26th
Events for January
27th
Events for January
28th
Events for January
29th
Events for January
30th
- 31
- 1
- 2
- 3
- 4
- 5
- 6
Events for January
31st

MMA/Boxing
YAMAMOTO, AGUON TO END YEAR IN RIZIN 26 RING
Foody’s 5 Fun Facts
NFL Fan Edition: Sherwin Paet
Polls
DID U KNOW?
Frank ‘The Crank’ Camacho was a competitive youth golfer in Saipan with dreams of making it to the PGA.
COMING SOON …
ALL SPORTING EVENTS HALTED DUE TO THE CORONAVIRUS ISSUE