148 swimmers take SSC challenge

(First of four parts)

Nearly 150 swimmers of all ages and all levels of ability took the plunge yesterday as the Saipan Swim Club rolled out the aquatic carpet for the 28th Annual Saipan International Ocean Swim.

Competitors under eight and over 50 splashed around the Saipan Lagoon in any one of four waves of watery whimsy in the early hours before retiring to the Saipan World Resort’s pavilion for Sunday Brunch, and the youngest were the first to take the plunge.

Of the 148 swimmers who made the rounds, a dozen participated in the 8-and-Under Division’s 600m race to the closer of the two Sherman Tanks in the Lagoon and back, but none was faster than eight-year-old Mokhtar Al-Yamani’s 13:54 circuit.

The International Buccaneers’ tadpole was joined soon after by teammate Toshiki Takahashi seven seconds later at 14:01. Local star Andrew Kimball of the Saipan Swim Club finished third among the boys’ at 16:20, followed by Kotaro Hosaka (17:29) of the International Buccaneers, John Tsui (18:32) of the Swimkids Buccaneers, and Phil Yoon (23:08) of the SSC.

The girls powered out the same course with much the same speed as Michelle Yarsel of the Tarkito Swim Team was the first female to hit the sand at 14:25, while seven-year-old Riiha Nakayama of the Tap Swim School took second (16:34), the SSC’s Opal Northen took third at 17:06, while Millie McKee of the Swimkids Buccaneers rounded out the division with a time of 18:27.

Fifteen kids entered the 9-10-year-old Division to challenge the 1-km course that sent the swimmers straight out to the farthest tank from the shore and back, and Benji Schulte of the Tarkito Swim Team was the first to return at 15:50.

Local star Kensuke Kimura of the SSC was the next to reach the beach at 16:44, and Schulte’s teammate Soujyu Usui took third at 16:54, while Tatsuya Tsujii of the Tarkito Swim Team (20:06), Keita Yoshida of the Tarkito Swim Team (23:17), Andrew Johnson of the SSC (23:29), and Edward Goodwin of the Swimkids Buccaneers (28:02) rounded out the boys.

The girls of the Tarkito Swim Team made a strong showing in the 1km race as Misaki Iijima (16:46), Allie Lai (16:58), and Rione Ema (16:59) swept the Top 3 ahead of Rimmu Williams (19:23) and Osisang Chilton (19:34) of the Palau Swim Team, Grace Kimball (19:41) of the SSC, Sarah Berg (20:38) of the Guam Typhoons, and the SSC’s Ashley Northen (24:00) completed the course in style.