From the emergency room to podium finish: Tan bags CNMI's first ever athletics gold at the Pacific Games

Tania Tan won a gold medal in the 5,000m on Monday, 27 November 2023. Photo: Supplied

Tania Tan won a gold medal in the 5,000m on Monday at the start of the athletics competition in the 2023 Pacific Games in Honiara, Solomon Islands.

But other than the finish atop the medal podium and a new Pacific Games record of 18:08.69 that obliterated the old mark of 18:20.09 set by Solomon Islands' Sharon Firisua in the 2015 Pacific Games, the 22-year-old University of Hawaii masters student also slayed demons along the way.

"I was trying to hang on and not go to the ER like like year. But I was like, 'go big, or go home. You have nothing to lose Tania. Last year, you didn't even finish the race, so at least finish this'," she said.

Tan collapsed in the 10,000m of last year's 2022 Northern Marianas Pacific Mini Games and that necessitated the trip to the emergency room.

In the 15 months since, she graduated from Fordham University and enrolled at the University of Hawaii's master's program where she now is in the cross country team.

The move from New York to Hawaii apparently helped with adjusting to the tropics as unlike in the Mini Games, Tan had an easier time acclimating to Honiara's humid weather.

"Hardest part was definitely the weather. It's superhot and humid here just like Saipan but really dusty too," she said.

"Moving to Hawaii probably helped, but I think also going back home to Saipan and Guam for a few days before coming here and running helped too," Tan said while thanking Guam triathlete Manami Iijima for training with her.

Tan collapsed in the 10,000m of last year's 2022 Northern Marianas Pacific Mini Games and that necessitated the trip to the emergency room. Photo: Supplied

Tan said that taking part in the Games in Honiara was a great experience, especially how the local people embraced all the athletes.

"Coolest part was definitely the atmosphere and getting to race at their newly built stadium. The energy of the crowd was crazy and their track facility is so nice."

Aside from the gold medal and new Games record, Tan's feat also marked the very first time the CNMI bagged a gold medal in the athletics event of the quadrennial event.

A fact that wasn't lost to Ron Snyder, Northern Marianas Athletics distance coach as well as Tan's High School coach.

"I couldn't be more proud of Tania for her performance in the Games but also in the incredible runner she has become overall," he said.

"This might not be her PR (personal reocrd) but she dominated that field and ran a very smart race to take the gold by more than 30 seconds. I think part of the difference from last time is just plain experience and, of course, some very hard work."

He added that unlike the Mini Games in 2022 it was apparent that his former ward at Saipan International School (SIS) came with a gameplan in Honiara.

Tan said that taking part in the Games in Honiara was a great experience. Photo: Supplied

"She has become quite a strategic runner and can see a race more clearly now. She knows her body and can judge what is best for it before a race and on the track."

As for the night-and-day results from the 2022 Mini Games collapse compared to the golden performance in the 2023 Pacific Games, the SIS headmaster said he can only speculate.

"She was certainly capable of performing at the pace she had set last time," he said.

"I imagine that there were a lot of things that caused her difficulties last time but her self-knowledge is definitely improved this time around.

"She was texting me before the race and I could tell she knew she had a good sense of where she was and who she was as a runner.

"One thing is for certain: she definitely is less impacted by the heat this time around since she is more used to competing in the heat now that she is racing in Hawaii," Snyder added.

Update: Tan added the 10,000m gold medal to her 5000m victory on Wednesday, 29 November. She won the 10,000m final in a time of 39:45.62 seconds.