By Guam Sports Network Pacific Daily News/GSPN
Three first medals for Guam in one day—from the same athlete.
Weightlifter Chloe Santos on Wednesday earned Guam’s first 2025 Pacific Mini Games medals, one gold and two silvers, on the very first day of weightlifting at the Meyuns Sports Complex.
“I came in with the mind that I wanted to win a medal…so it’s not too much of a surprise. It was a lot of preparation, so I’m really happy right now,” Santos said.
Guam is one of 23 island nations competing at the Pacific Mini Games in Palau.
Tahiti continues to dominate the Games with 44 medals, including 27 gold, followed by Samoa with 12 medals, and Palau with 18 as of Day 3, based on the latest medal tally as of 7 p.m. Wednesday, Guam time.
Guam ranked 15 on Day 3, while the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, CNMI, ranked 6 with 14 medals, including four gold, as of Wednesday.
Weightlifting
Lifting in the Women’s 53kg category, Guam’s Santos snatched an impressive 71kg for gold, her very first medal in an international competition.
In the clean and jerk, Santos continued her outstanding performance, lifting 80kg to earn her a silver.
With a combined total of 151kg, Santos placed second overall, winning herself three medals in just one day.
Santos reflected on the tough journey.
“A lot of work was put into it, a lot of training, and a lot of crying and sweating. It’s been fun, but it’s been a very difficult road,” she said, adding that her career isn’t finished. “It’s very gratifying, but of course not done yet. I wanna come out with gold next time.â€
Santos was Guam’s only weightlifter to compete on Wednesday, with teammates Jacinta Sumagaysay, Nissan Lujan, and Dave Bautista preparing for their turn to step onto the stage soon.
After days of rain, the young Guam baseball team stepped onto the Nippon Baseball Stadium for their first game against the PMG defending champions, the CNMI.
It was an exciting game for the crowd, but Guam ultimately fell short by just one run, 7-6.
The CNMI baseball team has history with Guam, earning gold in the championships in the last Mini Games and leaving Guam with silver.
The men faced nerves in their opening game, down 4-1 after five innings. However, the team found a burst of spirit in an exhilarating sixth inning. The men came running home, scoring five points in the single inning and putting them ahead at 6-4.
Unfortunately, at the bottom of the seventh, the CNMI clawed back with three runs to take the 7-6 win.
Once again, swimmer Mia Lee advanced to the finals in the Women’s 50m Butterfly, making the cut at fifth place with a time of 29.29 seconds.
Guam swimmers are continuing to work hard and strive for a medal. Amaya Bollinger, who set a personal record in Women’s 100m Butterfly on Tuesday, shared her excitement at the pool.
“In the coming days I hope to continue to do my best with my team and make more PRs. This meet is fun and I want to keep up the good vibes until the last day,” she said. “Any meet with the other islands is always fun and exciting so I hope that continues to be the case in the upcoming future.â€
Guam paddlers showed up to the ramp for longer distance races on Wednesday.
In the V6 1500m final, the men and women came in sixth with times of 9:49.08 and 10:40.08, respectively.
Aidan Artero will compete in the Men’s V1 16 km later Wednesday.
Guam’s softball faced tough opponents in the field Wednesday morning. Playing American Samoa, Guam couldn’t keep up and fell, 10-3.