X Rose was as dominant as ever, Korrie Tengan was a teammate again and a boys 50-yard freestyle sprint involving Kaden Parker was still one of the races to watch.
Competitive swimming is back.
There were surefire signs of a return to normalcy Saturday at Hawaii Prep’s Dowsett Pool in Waimea when Big Island Swimming held its first age-group meet since the onset of the pandemic.
“They were all happy to be swimming, whether they were swimming their best times or not,” Hilo Aquatic Club coach Jon Hayashida said. “Some kids didn’t even train, they just wanted to get back in the water.”
Once Kona Aquatics’ Finn Morton started off the festivities with a solo swim in the butterfly, Academy Swim Club coach Mark Noetzel knew the day was going to be a success. Like many, his favorite part of the competition was simply the competition itself. The last club swim meet was held 13 months ago.
“Having that first race go off and to show that we could do it and keep proper protocols in place,” Noetzel said of what he appreciated the most. “It was a long day and a lot of hours of work for me and much of Academy Swim Club, but it was worth it.”
The Kona Dolphins’ Rose, an eighth-grader, looked like he’d never left the water, winning all three of his races – the maximum allowed – and setting personal-bests in the 100-yard breaststroke (1 minute, 1.16 seconds) and the 100 free (50.53). At the state age-group meet in February 2020, Rose went 8 for 8 and broke three records, and Dolphins coach Joyce Follis said his time in the breaststroke puts him at 12th in the nation for 13-year-olds.
“Pretty amazing for not having a pool for a year,” Follis said. “He was on track to being the fastest 12-year-old boy in the nation in the 50-yard breaststroke and all of a sudden all of that was gone. Athletes were devastated, but rather than dwell on what we lost we focused on each and every silver lining we could find.”
Among the other swimmers to win all three of their races were Rose’s sister, Ana; Hilo Aquatic’s Olili’u Wise, an eighth-grader at Kamehameha; and Tengan, a senior at Waiakea High who competes for Warrior Aquatic Club.
“This past year has been full of struggles and learning how to compete again is a process. Being back on a block and having other competitors helps drastically,” said Tengan, who holds BIIF records in two events. “Overall, it was a fun day full of competitive spirit and fast swims.”
For safety reasons, four sessions were set up, separating swimmers by age and clubs by their location, with Academy swimmers joining the east and west groups. The format made for a faster-moving meet and less rest for swimmers.
Fatigue may have played a factor in the boys 15-18 50 free.
At the 2020 state high school championships as an HPA junior, Parker was out-touched for gold by Kamehameha-Kapalama’s Noa Copp by 18 one-hundredths of a second (21-21.18). This time, Kona Aquatics’ Duke Becker edged him by 12 one-hundredths (23.50-23.62).
“Accolades to Duke,” Noetzel said, “but I think Kaden was pretty tired.”
Parker, who swam the 50 in 21.5 recently, his coach said, won the 100 free for Academy.
The next meet is tentatively scheduled for April 24, Hayashida said, at Dowsett Pool. The county has yet to hand out permits for public pools to hold competitions, he said. It was only a few months ago that clubs were again allowed to hold organized practices at county facilities.
To fill the void, Follis said the Dolphins took to the Pacific.
“I am so proud of our athletes and parents. They have persevered and handled the past year with such grace and positivity,” she said. “We were the only club on island that practiced in open water while pools were closed. We had athletes (5-18) training in open water.
“It took a lot of work on everyone’s part. My coaching staff went above and beyond to make this possible for the kids, because at the end of the day, they are the future and deserve every opportunity we can provide for them.”