4 age group swim records fall

Tsunami Saipan’s Miku Tammy, seen here competing in last month’s All Schools meet at the Kan Pacific Swimming Pool, set one of the four age group marks in last Saturday’s NMISF meet. (Roselyn B. Monroyo)

Tsunami Swimming Center Saipan’s Kaito Yanai was the first one to make a new mark in Northern Mariana Island Swimming Federation’s last timed (official) competition this year and second overall for the 2014-2015 season. The 15-year-old swimmer clocked in 1:11.22 in the boys 15 to 16’s 100m breaststroke event to eclipse the 1:12.03 record of Kensuke Kimura registered on March 23, 2013.

The 100m breaststroke was one of the only two events Yanai entered in. He raced in the 200m individual medley and posted 2:24.29, juts less than a second behind his personal best time of 2:23.47.

Yanai’s three Tsunami Saipan teammates—Miku Tammy, Ashley Dangol, and Daime Rivera—logged the other age group marks in the weekend meet.

In the girls 11 to 12 division, Tammy submitted 1:17.30 in the 100m backstroke to shatter her own record (1:17.79) set on May 3, 2014. She finished way ahead of teammate Aika Watanabe in the event, as the latter timed in at 1:34.73.

Tammy joined two other races last weekend. In the 100m freestyle, she finished first and defeated three other swimmers after touching the wall at the 1:08.48 mark. Tammy’s PBT in the event is 1:08.14. In the 50m freestyle, the 12-year-old swimmer also won the event after recording 31.88 seconds. She prevailed against Sophia Gauran (32.90 seconds) Kyona Rivera (34.85 seconds), Watanabe (36.91 seconds), and Ailynn Galvan (1:02.70), but missed beating her PBT (31.28 seconds).

In the girls U8 age group, Dangol crushed her PBT and the division mark (41.69), which she set on Oct. 4, after timing in at 39.17 in last Saturday’s competition. Dangol won over teammate Shaunaly Babauta, who completed the race in 1:11.09.

Dangol had two other events in the same tournament, racing in the 50m freestyle and 200m medley relay. She defeated eight other swimmers in the 50m freestyle event after posting 38.26 seconds and then teamed up with Babauta, Kana Suzuki, and Maria Batallones in recording 3:43.57 in the girls U8 relay race.

In the girls 17 to 18 age group’s 50m breaststroke, Rivera clocked in at 42.62 seconds to break her own mark (43.76 seconds) registered on Oct. 4, 2014. Rivera also swam in the 100m breaststroke and her 1:36.02 gave her a new PBT, surpassing her 1:38.11.

Meanwhile, results of other races and the swimmers’ PBT will be reported in Saipan Tribune next week.