By KEVIN JAKAHI
Hawaii Tribune-Herald
Last Saturday, Madi Uekawa was part of the UH Rainbow Wahine swimming team that won the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation championship in Monterey Park, Calif., where a brilliant sunset closed her career.
The 2013 Waiakea graduate and UH senior team captain was on the gold 200-yard freestyle relay squad and also swam in the 50 free, 100 free, and 100 breaststroke.
“It was the perfect way to end my swimming career. I love my Rainbow Wahine teammates,” Uekawa said. “Especially as a team captain, I am so proud of each and every one of them. We really came together as a team and performed beyond what was expected.
“As for the relay, it was the first time I was on the 200 free relay at conference. I was extremely nervous, but it was a great experience.”
Uekawa was also on the 2015 Rainbow Wahine squad that captured the MPSF title. She was the breaststroker on the winning 200 medley relay team that broke a school record and swam in the 100 breast.
“It has honestly been the best season of my life, and I was able to go all best times throughout the season,” she said. “The team underwent a lot of changes this year with a new coaching staff, but in the end it was all for the better.
“The best part about swimming for UH is I get to represent Hawaii and be a part of an incredibly diverse team since people from all around the world come to swim for UH. Throughout my time at UH, I have had teammates from Germany, Italy, Israel, Switzerland, New Zealand, Australia, Poland, Iceland, Finland, Norway, Philippines, Slovenia, Canada, Guam, and England.”
While UH teammates have come and gone, Uekawa has been a permanent fixture.
“I’m the only senior who is left from my starting class and being the lone survivor has been the biggest struggle for me,” she said. “At times it was hard to stick it out, but my teammates have been super supportive along the way and have helped me through a lot.”
If there’s an award her parents, Glen and Merlynda, can be most proud of it’s Uekawa’s MPSF All-Academic selection the last two years, with a third pending.
She’s holding a 3.99 cumulative grade-point average, double majoring in Public Health and English. Uekawa will attend Seattle University law school in the fall.
Her older brother Grant Uekawa, a 2011 Waiakea graduate, swam for UH for four years, earned an Electrical Engineering degree and is working for Aerospace Co. in California. He’s shooting for his Masters at UCLA.
Her younger brother Teddy Uekawa, a 2016 Waiakea graduate, was another standout swimmer. He’s at UH in the Civil/Environmental Engineering program.
Though her career has been sprinkled with success, both in the pool and in the classroom, it was never easy for Uekawa, who walked on at UH.
Swimming, school, and work take up most of her time. UH trains six days a week, totaling 20 hours. Free time is rare, so there are no afforded luxuries, like going to a Mariah Carey concert at the Neal Blaisdell Center.
“Perseverance and time management have been my keys to success,” Uekawa said. “Balancing swimming with my academics and work schedule — I am a writing tutor and mentor for other student-athletes — hasn’t been easy, but I have learned to manage it over the years.”
In her BIIF reign of dominance, Uekawa pocketed four golds in the 100 breast and finished her career 8 of 8 in individual events.
But for those who know Madi best, she was never about just chasing fast times. She always wanted to push others, especially the next generation of BIIF swimmers.
So what does her success, in both areas, tell BIIF kids who want to compete for their state school on the Division I level?
“I started off as a walk-on at UH, and I accomplished more than I ever thought I could in the last four years,” Uekawa said. “It’s pretty awesome to compete at a collegiate level. It isn’t anything like club or high school swimming.
“If I can make it through all four years of being a student-athlete, I think any BIIF athlete who really wants it enough can do the same. It may get challenging at times, but it is honestly an irreplaceable experience.”
