PSI names five bets for World Meet

MANILA, Philippines — Five swimmers, led by two-time Olympian Jasmine Alkhaldi, will represent the country at the World Aquatics Championships in Fukuoka on July 14-30 and the delegation would’ve included Teia Salvino and Miranda Renner but they begged off due to academic obligations.

The five bets are Alkhaldi (50m freestyle), Thanya de la Cruz (50m breaststroke), Jarod Hatch (50m freestyle), Jerard Jacinto (50m backstroke) and Xiandi Chua (200m backstroke, 400m individual medley). They’re all national record holders and medalists in the recent SEA Games. Coach is Ryan Arabejo, subbing for Pinky Brosas.

Two-time Tokyo Olympic medalist Kayla Sanchez (4x100m freestyle, 4x100m medley) is skipping Fukuoka. She’s expected to make her Philippine debut at the Asian Games in Hangzhou, China, on Sept. 23-Oct. 8. Sanchez also intends to compete in the World Championships in Doha on Feb. 2-18 next year in the process of qualifying for the Paris Olympics.

Brosas said World Aquatics is the sole authority that determines who competes in the Olympics. “As always, the long course format for the World Championships is an Olympic qualifier,” he said. “The selection normally is the swimmer who attains the highest FINA points. In this system, 1,000 FINA points represent the current world record. Swimmers who achieve over 800 FINA points are usually named Olympic qualifiers by World Aquatics. Our swimmers should strive for the highest FINA points with their best times in the World Championships. I believe points are earned until late March next year.”

Alkhaldi, 30, has collected seven silver and 21 bronze medals in the SEA Games since 2013 and holds the 50m freestyle national record. De la Cruz, 20, is an Ateneo sophomore who holds the national records in 50m, 100m and 200m breaststroke. Hatch, 24, is from the University of California and holds the national records in 50m and 100m butterfly. Jacinto, 22, is from Texas A&M University via La Salle Zobel and holds the national records in 50m and 100m backstroke. Chua, 23, holds the national records in 200m and 400m individual medley and 200m backstroke. The La Salle standout set a new SEA Games record with a time of 2:13.20 to strike gold in 200m backstroke in Cambodia.