Local bets top Rota Blue Ocean Swim
Saipan Swim Club mainstays Seung Gin Lee, Dean Palacios, Nina Moseley and Tamiko and Jeremy Winkfield topped their respective categories in last Saturday’s 3rd Annual Rota Blue Ocean Swim.
Lee was the first out of the water in the 4-mile ocean swim as the 2001 Athlete of the Year winner finished the long course in a time of 56 minutes and 46 seconds.
He went on to best former Olympian Dan O’Keefe after the Guam resident clocked in about two minutes later at 59 minutes and 23 seconds.
Saipan Swim Club coach Bill Sakovich continued to turn back the hands of time as he finished third in the men’s division.
The 59-year old NMASA secretary reached the sandy shores in 1 hour, 13 minutes and 50 seconds.
“The water was nice but rough with big swells as you’re coming back to the shore,” said Sakovich.
In the women’s side, 27-year old Japanese Honmo Motoko ruled her division after she timed in at 1 minute, 13 minutes and 6 seconds.
Two other Japanese tankers took the second and third spots as 62-year old Nakazawa Akiko and 37-year old Fujita Miyuki finished in 1:16:19 and 1:17:02, respectively.
In the 1-mile swim, 15-year old Palacios grabbed first place in the men’s side with a time of 19 minutes 47 seconds.
A couple of Japanese followed as Yamashita Syoji and Iwama Futoshi finished second and third in the men’s division.
All five Saipan entries in the women’s category, on the other hand, finished in the top as Mosley, Myana Welch, Nicole Calvo, Amanda Johnson and Natasha Good came out of the water almost one after the other.
Mosley bagged the top prize finishing the course in 21 minutes and 58 seconds, while Welch and Calvo settled for second and third.
In the 2-mile category, the brother-and-sister tandem of Jeremy and Tamiko Winkfield made short work of the course en rout to topping the men and women’s category.
Jeremy finished the 2-mile race in 30 minutes and 36 seconds to nose out fellow SSC tanker Quincy Johnson, who came in 5 seconds later. Tamiko, on the other hand, clocked in at 31 minutes and 35 seconds, more than 6 minutes faster than second place Nagamine Seiko of Japan.
The Rota Blue Ocean Swim was organized by the Rota Mayor’s Office with the help of the Rota Resort and Country Club, Japan’s KFC Triathlon Club, and the Marianas Visitors Authority.
