Nine wrestlers to compete in Thailand; fundraising continues

Nine NMI wrestlers are training hard on the mats as they prepare to represent the CNMI at the 2026 United World Wrestling Thailand Open from Nov. 18-22, while continuing to seek community support to help fund their trip.

The team has held several fundraisers leading up to the competition, but efforts are still underway. The latest fundraiser will be a Bingo night tomorrow, Saturday, Nov. 7, at 6pm on the second floor of the Afetnas Building in San Antonio. Bingo packets are available for $30 each.

The federation will also hold a send-off ceremony for the team on Thursday, Nov. 12, at 6pm in the conference room of the Gilbert C. Ada Gymnasium.

The nine wrestlers will compete across three age divisions: Cadet (U17), Junior (U20), and Senior (20+).

In the Cadet division, Seth Sablan will compete in both Freestyle and Greco-Roman at 65kg, while Grant Li will compete in both styles at 71kg. Frank Laniyo will represent the CNMI in Freestyle and Greco-Roman at 92kg.

Lincoln Manibusan is the lone CNMI representative in the Junior division, competing in Freestyle at 65kg and Greco-Roman at 67kg.

The Senior division will feature five wrestlers. Ray Santos will compete in Freestyle at 57kg and Greco-Roman at 55kg, while Daryn Roufs will compete at 61kg in Freestyle and 63kg in Greco-Roman. Nimesh Fonseka will compete in Freestyle at 57kg.

Chris Hardt will represent the CNMI in Freestyle at 79kg and Greco-Roman at 77kg, while Miles Borja will compete in Freestyle at 79kg and Greco-Roman at 82kg.

During a practice session this week at the Marianas High School Gymnasium, head coach Rick Bauer said the Thailand Open marks an important milestone for CNMI wrestling. CNMI wrestling has competed in the Micronesian Games and Pacific Mini Games in the past, but this will be the first time the CNMI competes in a United World Wrestling event.

“Definitely a first, very exciting. Something that we’ve been working to build, and this is the first step toward growing and making wrestling a bigger thing in Saipan and the CNMI,” said Bauer.

United World Wrestling (UWW) is the international governing body for amateur wrestling, overseeing both Freestyle and Greco-Roman wrestling. This specific one was an open invitation to Oceania and Asia, with potential competitors from Japan, Korea, all of South East Asia, Australia, and other countries in those regions.

“Registration is closed. The brackets aren’t posted yet so we don’t know who our opponents are going to be, so that’s part of the fun. It’s exciting to see the matchups, and I’m sure different caliber of wrestling, so I’m excited to get tested,” said Bauer.