The Sports Leigh-Out July 11-17, 2026

Hafa Adai and Tirow sports fans, this is Leigh Gases with this week’s Sports Leigh-Out brought to you by Joeten Motors!

Let’s take a closer look at what our athletes have been up to in off-island competitions and on their home turf—whether it’s on the pitch, mat, courts, fields, track, pools, or the beautiful ocean.

Tinian’s Team Koka hosts youth soccer clinic

On Thursday, July 16, Tinian’s Team Koka Strong Roots held a soccer clinic for the youth to enjoy, giving them the opportunity to be introduced to a new sport while developing their skills through play and fun.

Team Marianas in Japan Karate Dream Festival Int’l Champs

A team of seven CNMI karate practitioners is set to test itself against some of the world's best this weekend, July 18-19, at the Karate Dream Festival 2026 International Championship at Yoyogi National Stadium First Gymnasium in Tokyo, Japan.

Representing the CNMI are Sensei Danny Banez, Senpai Eric Atalig, Spencer Floyd, Mileah Dowai, Alex Deleon Guerrero, Airie Deleon Guerrero, and Isaiah Orr, who will compete in one of the world's largest full-contact karate tournaments.

Organized by the World Karate Organization Shinkyokushinkai, the biennial championship draws thousands of competitors from the junior and senior divisions, making it one of the premier events on the international full-contact karate calendar.

The CNMI athletes are competing as part of Team Marianas alongside athletes from Guam. Stay tuned for results from the tournament.

In 2024, CNMI brought a four-member team to the Karate Dream Festival also held in Japan where Jerry Diaz bagged a silver medal in his debut.

1st int’l badminton tourney underway

The first of three international badminton tournaments, the YONEX Northern Marianas Open, got off to a strong start at the Gilbert C. Ada Gymnasium on Tuesday, July 14. While three NMI players won their matches, NMI is now out of contention, with other top seeded players falling ahead of the championship round tomorrow, Sunday, July 19. Stay tuned for more coverage of this event.

Basketball fed installs new board

In the NMI Basketball Federation’s board meeting on Thursday, July 16, at the MANGO conference room, a new board was installed for 2026, as president James Lee leaves his post.

The newly installed board and officers are as follows:

* President - Patrick Guerrero

* VP - Marlene Lumabi

* Treasurer - Zack Diaz

* Secretary Rachel Langu

* Board of Directors:

  - Michelle Kaultz

  - Preston Basa

  - Nathan Mook

  - Sylvina Simram

  - Madeleine Alegre

NSA girls in Guam for fastpitch clinic

In an effort to grow the sport of fastpitch softball in the CNMI, the Natibu Sports Association brought its girls softball players to Guam to attend a Softball Fastpitch Academy, which runs through Friday, July 17.

Listen to NSA's Shirley Norita as she talks about the goals for the players, and also hear from some of the athletes as they share what they hope to learn from the camp on our Youtube channel or social media pages.

Carol Lee is Seixal Open champ

After dropping the opening set, CNMI tennis standout Carol Lee adjusted her game and made an epic comeback to capture another international title, the Seixal Ladies Open 2026 in Portugal held from July 6-12.

At the ITF W50 tourney, Lee refused to let the slow start determine the outcome of the match and won, 1-6, 6-1, 6-2, over Xinyu Gao.

"After the first set, I reminded myself that one set doesn't decide a match," Lee said. "I told myself to stay calm, trust my game, and focus on one point at a time instead of the scoreboard."

Lee also leaned on advice from her coach, Artem Smirnov, before the tournament, reminding herself to focus on each point rather than the final result.

"I remembered my call with my coach about showing gratitude and to work for each point and results will show," she said. "So I stopped worrying about the result and started focusing on competing with more energy and belief."

With that, Lee adjusted by becoming more aggressive herself and taking control of rallies. The comeback made the win even more satisfying for Lee, who said the biggest challenge is finding ways to respond when things do not go her way.

"Anyone can feel confident when things are going well, but I believe the real challenge is responding when you're struggling," she said.

Following her Wimbledon campaign before this, Lee entered this tournament focused on enjoying her return to hard courts and continuing to improve her game. The win gave her another boost of confidence as she continues building toward bigger tournaments.

"As someone representing the Northern Mariana Islands, I would like to set an example and inspire athletes from our small islands that we can compete on the international world," Lee said.

Lee will now turn her attention to upcoming tournaments, including the WTA 250 in Prague, ITF 75 in Ourense, Spain, ITF 35 in Vigo, Spain, and then U.S. Open qualifiers.

Her goal for the rest of the season is to continue climbing the rankings and work toward reaching the top 150. "My biggest goal is to continue improving my ranking and competing at a higher level each week," Lee said. "I want to keep earning opportunities to play bigger tournaments and continue developing every part of my game."

U12 baseball tryouts underway

The Saipan Baseball League hosted its first of a series of U12 Jr. National Baseball team tryouts at the Francisco “Tan Ko” Palacios Baseball Field for the WBSC Oceania Qualifiers scheduled for late November to early December 2026 in Guam.

The tryouts are open exclusively to players born in 2015 and 2016. The next tryouts are on July 21, Aug. 4, and Aug. 8.

Listen to the interview of SBL’s Kyle Hocog on our Youtube channel and social media pages.