GUAM’S FIRST EVER NINJA GAMES TAKE CENTER COURT

By Paradis Jolie Fejerang

Guma i Sindalu Siha organized the first-ever Sindalu Ninja Games this past weekend. The two-day eventful Sindalu Ninja Games took place in the center court of the Micronesia Mall. Over the course of the event, there were a total of five competitions taking place: 15U Female, 15U Male, Open Division Female, Open Division Male, and the Team Event.

Female athlete Kylie Baker stood out through the events as she was able to sweep the competition with two gold medals for herself from the Open Division and the Team Event as well as being a supportive worker on the sidelines as each of the 15U athletes took to the stage for their runs. From the Open Division, Baker stole the show with the most points for the females with 11 out of 21 and still completing her turn quicker than her competitors at 3 mins and 6 secs. For the Team Event, Baker partnered with Luca and Nico Flores as ‘Chess Team’ to complete the course with a total of 15 out of 17 points.

The recognizable Ninja Warrior stage garnered much attention in the center court of the mall with the obstacles rigged together as it is a first for the local community to witness in such a public setting. Moreso, when the 15U athletes gathered to show off their warrior capabilities, supporters and passerby alike grew excited as athletes as young as 10 years old showed off their strength and ferocity.

Who seemed to collect the most attention on Sunday afternoon were the 15U Males, who displayed an array of sportsmanship and truly put on a show for onlookers with enthusiasm and emotion both on and off the rigs.

Young Shelton Wright, in particular, gained adoration after being the highest ranking athlete for the 15U category in the qualifying rounds. During his run, Wright breezed through the obstacles, but was unable to finish after landing incorrectly on a dismount that only one other athlete, Joy Belyshev, was able to successfully complete. Still, Wright had been able to stack up enough points prior to his injury to achieve a silver medal.

The gold medalist for the 15U Males, eleven year old Malakai Graniel, shares that he knew some of the other athletes that were participating and they even practiced together leading up to the games, largely contributing to the adoring sportsmanship many young athletes showed in cheering and helping out their competitors. Despite the accomplishment, Graniel has no problem admitting that he was scared to take part in the games, but that ranking highly in the qualifying round made him feel good about competing. Now with a gold medal, he wants to invite more young athletes to try out in the future and increase the competition to push each other further. “It’s really fun and you can brag to your friends,” Graniel closes with hopes of enticing future Ninja Warriors!

Medalists

15U Female (17 points possible)

1. Bella Adzhigirey – 13 pts, 4:17
2. Joann Salas – 11 pts, 4:31
3. Joy Belyshev – 10 pts, 4:27

15U Male (17 points possible)

1. Malakai Graniel – 13 pts, 3:25
2. Shelton Wright – 10 pts, 2:30
3. Jayce Cruz – 9 pts, 3:11

Open Division Female (21 points possible)

1. Kylie Baker – 11 pts, 3:06
2. Shanna Miller-Nabas – 8 pts, 3:45
3. Ann Zingsheim – 6 pts, 4:11

Open Division Male (21 points possible)

1. Rai Flores – 20 pts, 2:52
2. Michael Quitugua – 20 pts, 2:59
3. Marius Salas – 19 pts, 2:17

Team Event (17 points possible)

1. Chess Team (Kylie Baker, Luca Flores, Nico Flores) – 15 pts, 2:30
2. Miller-Nabanez (Noah Banez, Arvee Miller-Nabas, Shanna Miller-Nabas) – 13 pts, 2:20
3. No Doubt (Stanley Au, Rai Flores, Victoria Ysrael) – 10 pts, 1:51

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