2 NMBA officials take on key roles in badminton

Two Northern Marianas Badminton Association officials have committed to take on new roles in the sport outside the NMI.

NMBA president Merlie Tolentino joined the Badminton Oceania Executive Board following her election at the BOC Annual General Meeting in Chengdu, China last week. NMBA secretary general Christy Villaflor, on the other hand, was confirmed Badminton World Federation line judge for the ongoing TotalEnergies BWF Thomas & Uber Cup Finals 2024—the two major tournaments featuring top-ranked players in the world.

Tolentino joins BOC president Loke Poh Wong of Australia, deputy president Glenn Cox of New Zealand, BWF vice president (Oceania) Geraldine Brown, Johanna Kou of New Caledonia, and Ngaoa Ranginui of the Cook Islands on the BOC Executive Board.

“It is an honor to be part of the BOC Executive Board and have the opportunity to work with the men and women in Badminton Oceania who for years have dedicated their time and effort in the continued development of our sport in the region,” Tolentino said.

“I look forward to serving our BOC member-associations and being part of a team, whose vision is to make badminton accessible to all,” Tolentino said.

Meanwhile, Villaflor made history for her participation in the Thomas & Uber Cup Finals 2024 as a BWF line judge. She is the first line judge from a BOC-MA, outside big guns Australia and New Zealand, to get the BWF line judge appointment for the prestigious competition.

“Being appointed as a BWF line judge for these high-level events is a learning experience for me. While I am excited to watch top-level players play, I must concentrate on the task at hand so I can make the right calls,” said Villaflor, who also umpires local and regional matches.

The NMBA official added that the knowledge and experience she will gain from the tournaments in Chengdu are very useful because she is also training local officials that the association will be counting on when the NMI hosts two international competitions in July this year.

“The goal is always to take every knowledge you can get from these events, bring them back and share to others to build local capacity and create pathways for opportunities for them too,” Villaflor said. (PR)