Young Officials Make Their Mark in Northern Marianas

SAIPAN, NMI — While our region’s budding stars battled for glory at the VICTOR Oceania Junior Championships, a few of our other rising talents flew under the radar.

Five young local technical officials—Kyle Salcedo, Daniell Pablo, Rolando Gallardo, Paulo Quidato, and Brian Lubao—were stepping into their first international roles under the guidance of Pacific Accredited Umpire and BWF Line Judge, Christy Villaflor.

For four of them, the June tournaments served as a formal assessment period. After weeks of preparation and hands-on experience, they were officially awarded their Pacific Accredited Umpire certificates during the Grade 3 tournaments held in August, marking a major milestone in their officiating careers.

“The first few matches were definitely nerve-wracking,” said Quidato. “As an umpire, I feel like I have a responsibility to ensure the audience gets a well put together match, but being able to work with the players on court was really fun.”

Mentorship and Growth

Many of these young officials were badminton players who found new ways to stay involved in the sport. For Quidato, the transition was swift. He only began learning the ins and outs of umpiring in May 2025.

“I came back from College for the summer, and Christy encouraged me to take the umpire certification, and that’s where everything started,” he said. “Once we were all introduced to the umpire pathway, we just wanted to keep going.”

In the lead up to the Northern Marianas’ first Junior Continental Championship, Villaflor wholeheartedly devoted herself to the group. Long days and longer nights, she guided the young umpires through every step of the process to ensure they were ready for the big show.

“Having local technical officials is very important in terms of organising and hosting events and tournaments,” Villlaflor said. “Without these technical officials, hosting events is chaotic. They are part of the structure of our development, and that is why it is important to have them.”

For Quidato, Villaflor’s mentorship made a world of difference when their time finally came to take the court.

“The preparation that we had prior to the matches was what helped us get into our flow very early on.” He said.  “The encouragement that we got from our other fellow umpires, especially from our mentors like Christy, guided us on how to keep the flow on the court and how to better ourselves as umpires.”

That mentorship not only helped them perform under pressure, it also gave them someone to look up to.

“Christy was the first official from Saipan to pursue this pathway, and a lot of people were surprised at the accomplishments she’s made, ” Quidato said. “To us, Christy is this figure that we can use as an example, seeing this is the path she took, and that is what we can hopefully achieve as well.”

Quidato was also awarded a final at the CENTURY INSURANCE Saipan International, one of the biggest moments of his umpiring career so far.

“I did a few finals during the Junior Championships but this was my first international final, and it’s safer to say that I was very nervous at the beginning,” he said. “But once I sat on the chair and ensured everything went according to plan, I gained more confidence. I relied on my line judges and sought guidance from my service judge as well, and that overall led to a good match.”

The pride Villaflor felt seeing her new umpires take control of high-stress situations and officiate with confidence fills her with hope for what the future of Northern Marianas Badminton holds.

“I just want people to know that even if we are a very small country, we have capable people who can achieve great things,” she said.  “There’s a pathway to everything, and officiating is one of them.  Badminton enthusiasts and followers in NMI should know that no matter your age, gender, or status, you can achieve great things with hard work and dedication, just like these young gentlemen.

“I want them to be the inspiration of the next badminton generation in NMI.”