NMI swimmers eye finals spots, podium finish
The goal for the NMI National Swim Team members is to have as many finals appearances as they can have in their respective races in the 2023 Pacific Games in Honiara, Solomon Islands.
The newly-built swimming facility at the host country will be flooded with swimmers, including the strong 14-person NMI National Swim Team, and with a full field, competitions will be very tough and coach Richard Sikkel and Hiro Kimura said the squad are setting their sights on reaching the finals in their events.
“The NMI Swimming Federation has set the goal to have as many NMI swimmers earn a spot in their event finals,” said Sikkel.
The NMI National Team is led by Team Marianas flagbearer Isaiah Aleksenko and collegiate standout Juhn Tenorio. Completing the squad are Taiyo Akimaru, Maria Batallones Kevin Guerrero, Julia Jinang, Shoko Litulumar, Michael Miller, Andrew Nunez, Kean Pajarillaga, Frances Raho, Moshe Sikkel, Nagi Tenorio, and Kouki Watanabe. Yuko Kimura is the team manager.
The swimming competition will run from Nov. 20 to 24 with nearly 200 entries from 14 countries listed for the event.
“There have been cases in the past Pacific Games where the number of participants was too small and all registered swimmers were able to advance to the finals without qualifying. This time, there will be a lot of swimmers in Honiara, and for us, the goal is to get as many NMI swimmers as possible to the finals. The Pacific Games will be a battle between the pride of big island nations and pride of small island-nations in terms of swimming program,” Hiro Kimura said.
Coach Kimura is talking about the “big island” and powerhouse swim teams of New Caledonia and Tahiti, which each registered 23 swimmers in their rosters. Solomon Islands and Fiji also have 20-plus swimmers each, while the NMI’s neighbor, Guam, signed up 17. Palau, Vanuatu, and Papua New Guinea each have more than 10 swimmers, while the Federated States of Micronesia, Tonga, and Samoa listed nine each. Cook Islands will have four, while American Samoa has a lone entry in the swimming competition.
Both Kimura and Sikkel are positive of the NMI swimmers’ chances to make it to the medal podium in individual and relay races, while all swimmers are expected to earn personal best times, and many are anticipated to establish age group and national records.
The NMI swimmers and the rest of Team Marianas delegation will leave Saipan for Honiara this Wednesday. The 2023 Pacific Games will kick off on Nov. 19 and will run until Dec. 2. Team Marianas is supported by Joeten Daidai Foundation, Triple J, Crowne Plaza Resort, IT&E, IP&E, Tan Siu Lin Foundation, Mobil, Tan Holdings, and McDonald’s of Saipan & Guam. (PR)
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