Best youth tankers clash in Coseteng meet

MANILA, Philippines - More than 400 promising swimmers, who have logged the best times throughout the year, will converge in the 1st Nikki Coseteng Swimming Championship on Dec. 18 at the Rizal Memorial Swimming Pool to determine top age-group tankers of 2011.

Representing 42 teams with some coming from Bohol, Cagayan, Cebu, Zamboanga, Davao and Baguio, the tankers in the 11-12, 13-14, 15-17, and 18-and-over age brackets will vie for honors in the 200m individual medley, 100m breaststroke, 200m freestyle, 100m backstroke, 100m butterfly, and 50m freestyle events.

According to event organizers former senator Nikki Coseteng of Diliman Preparatory School (DPS) and Susan Papa of Philippine Swimming League (PSL), the top 16 swimmers in each of the six events were selected for the one-day swimfest based on their previous times.

“This will be the first time for a Top 16 Competition to be held in the Philippines and we aim to select the overall top male and female for the year, as part of our continuous grassroots development program,” Coseteng said in a press launch yesterday.

US age-group standards were also set to give the swimmers a higher target time to aspire for.

“We’re using the American standard, not the SEA Games standard because we’re 10 years behind in swimming. This way, even if we miss the mark, we’d still have competitive times in the Asian level,” said Papa.

Among the prominent tankers in the field are James Walker of the UP Varsity team, who has met the “AAA” US standard in the boys’ 18-over 200m free and 100m back, and “AAA” holders Andrei Manzo (boys 15-17 100m breast), Danjylie Cordero (girls 18-over 100m breast), Teohdy Gavino (boys 18-over 100m breast), Nikita Dacera (boys 18-over 200m free), Jacklyn Orig and Loren Echavez (girls 15-17 100 fly), Pricila Aquino and Trisha Isabelos (girls 13-14 50m free).

Swimmers were selected and invited to the event regardless of affiliation, they stressed.

“We have 20-plus PASA members swimming here,” said Papa, referring to the Philippine Amateur Swimming Association (PASA) with which the organizers have a spat over the way the sport is being managed.

Coseteng said there is a need for a genuine reform in Philippine swimming to restore its glory years, especially in the wake of the swimming team’s two-silver, five-gold performance in the 26th Southeast Asian Games.

“I hope they learned their lessons and open their eyes. This is not a wakeup call but a wakeup scream,” Coseteng said.