Jamesray Mishael Ajido and Heather White proved they can swim with the best the continent has to offer.
The 15-year-old Ajido and the Filipino-British White plucked bronze medals each in the 11th Asian Age Group Swimming Championships on Wednesday, finally installing Team Philippines on the medal table.
“Before the race, I wasn’t expecting much because I was still recovering from the 50-meter freestyle. So to have this win after a loss is truly amazing,’’ said White after placing third in the girls 15-17 100-m butterfly.
The 16-year-old White, who is based in Vietnam, clocked a personal best of 1:03.09 behind Hong Kong swimmers Hoi Ching Yeung (1:00.50) and silver performer Sze Ki Mok (1:02.73). Hoi shattered Japan’s Aki Obata’s 1:00.73 record set in 2009.
Ajido, of Antipolo City, placed third in the boys’ 12-14 50-m freestyle in 24.34 seconds, his personal best and the new national record.
Toya Hirata of Japan nabbed the gold medal in 23.21, erasing the 24.03 achieved by Japanese Yuga Takashima in 2019.
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