Kai resumes pursuit of swim records

CNMI swimmer Kai Staal left Saipan last week after a brief Christmas vacation to resume his quest for records, which was a far-fetched goal several months ago after he was deemed ineligible to race for Ashland High School.

“Well, our team does not actually have tryouts, however I did have a problem with the Oregon School Activities Association. They ruled me ineligible to play high school sports for the first couple of months in Ashland because my parents did not live in the same school district as I did,” Kai said.

Kai’s parents, Patty and Mark are still here on Saipan, and allowed their son to live with his grandparents in Ashland and spend his last year in high school at Ashland.

“My grandparents live in Ashland, Oregon, and they had offered me to move in with them and finish my senior year last March. At the time, I couldn’t see it happening. Once I got to the states however, I visited the school and its programs and I could see myself really enjoying the change. I decided to stay in Oregon a week before my scheduled flight back to Saipan late July. By that time I met kids on the water polo team who took me in as family and people really welcomed me. The wider array of opportunities such as jobs, internships, and high school sports really appealed to me. I wanted to reach out and expand my horizon,” the 18-year-old swimmer said.

Staal finally enrolled at Ashland High School, but had to go through a hearing with OSAA to be able to swim for his new school.

“After a long process of small court rulings and working through the District Committee and getting denied, I was finally approved a hearing with the head of the OSAA and a panel of community members involved in high school sports. My grandpa and I had a phone conference with them and I gave a small speech about how the ineligibility was affecting me. I discussed why it was an unfair consequence because the rule was intended for kids that were recruited from other schools to play sports. Clearly that was not my case. Twenty minutes after the phone conference they called back with a unanimous approval for my eligibility. From there on I was free to play sports,” the former Saipan International School student said.

Staal joined his first competition for Ashland-the Shakespear Invitational-and then last month raced against North Medford where he set a new record for his school in the 100yard breaststroke event.

“It was great competing in my first tournament here and it made me realize how much I enjoyed racing. I was nervous at first because I heard about this guy named Aron who is at my level of racing and he proved to be a great competitor. He beat me in both the 50yard and 100yard freestyle This was before the high school season started so I hadn’t trained since May,” Staal said.

However, once he returned to the pool, Staal started getting his old form and showed his worth to his new squad.

The 2010 Micronesian Games multiple gold medalist said he will not be able make a mark in Ashland if not for the support of Tsunami Saipan, his teammates, and coach Hiro Kimura.

“Everything I have learned from coach Hiro and Tsunami Saipan I continue to practice in my life. I have been able to give tips to my teammates in Ashland. To Tsunami swimmers, the past several years of training with you all has been great. I have seen you guys improve so much and I hear about all the records that keep falling. I know how much hard work you put into the sport and the rewards are well deserved,” said Staal, who joined his former teammates’ training session at the Kan Pacific Swimming Pool when he came home two weeks ago.