Tsunami Saipan sets 16 swim marks

Ashley Dangol, left, and Nanaka Watanabe pose for a photo at the Kan Pacific Swimming Pool before starting their training session with Tsunami Saipan last week. (CONTRIBUTED PHOTO)

Tsunami Swimming Center Saipan swimmers posted 16 records in the 2014 Saipan Swim Club International Invitational Meet held late last month at the Kan Pacific Swimming Pool.

Kaito Yanai and Kensuke Kimura led Tsunami Saipan’s record-breaking performances in the two-day tournament, as they earned five swim marks each. Nanaka Watanabe, Ashley Dangol, Ryuto Yanai, and Miku Tammy also set records in their respective age groups.

Kaito raced in the 13 to 14 division and had record swims in the 50m backstroke, 50m, 100m, and 200m breaststroke, and 200 individual medley. His 31.98 seconds in the 50m backstroke eclipsed the 32.25 seconds Kimura logged on Feb. 4, 2011, while the latter’s 200m IM record (2.25.69) was scrapped from the list when Kaito submitted 2:23.62 in last month’s meet.

In the three breaststroke events, Kaito crushed his own records. His 33.30 seconds in the 50m breaststroke was about two seconds faster than the 35.04 he registered on March 23, 2013. In the 100m breaststroke, Kaito chopped off more than two seconds from his previous mark (1:13.55) recorded on Nov. 5, 2013 after clocking in at 1:11.19 in the SSC-hosted competition. For the 200m breaststroke, the 14-year-old Yanai shaved more than three seconds from his old mark (2:36:55/March 23, 2013) after tallying 2:32.61.
Kaito’s younger brother, Ryuto, got his second record in the 9 to 10 age group. His 1:07.91 in the 100m freestyle swim surpassed the 1:08.35 Kento Akimaru of SSC logged on Nov. 6, 2011. Ryuto first made it to the 9 to 10 age group record book on May 24, 2013 with his 3:03.63 in the 200m butterfly.

In the girls U8 division, two Tsunami Saipan swimmers made it on the elite list for the first time. Watanabe timed in at 1:51.11 in the 100m breaststroke to shatter the 14-year mark of SSC’s Amanda Johnson, who posted 2:00.13 on March 31, 2000. In the 100m butterfly, Dangol’s 1.58.06 is considered as the first official entry.

In the girls 11 to 12, Tammy earned two new marks and reset one. Her 35.34 seconds in the 50m backstroke erased the 35.92 seconds of fellow Tsunami Saipan swimmer Angel Marie Tan logged on Nov. 19, 2011. Another of Tan’s marks fell when Tammy registered 2:45.47 seconds in the 200m backstroke against the former’s 2:53.96 (Dec. 3, 2011). In the 50m butterfly, Tammy submitted 32.54 seconds, which was better than her previous mark of 33.50 (May 25, 2013).

In the 17 to 18 age group, Kimura reset his two marks and broke one and at the same time posted two CNMI national records. In the 800m freestyle, the 17-year-old timed in at 9:27.80 to beat the 9:29.53 he recorded on May 25, 2013. In the 50m backstroke, the 2013 NMASA/TSL Foundation Athlete of the Year tallied 29.13 seconds, which are both considered age group and CNMI national marks. Kai Staal held the previous 17 to 18 division and CNMI national records with his 29.50 seconds set on April 16, 2011. Kimura also reset age group and CNMI national marks in the 100m backstroke after logging 1:02.75, which is better than his old record (1:03.62) made on Nov. 5, 2013.