Five medals, PBs in Tokyo for Saipan Swim Club swimmers

Saipan Swim Club swimmers made up of Luke Seman, Junior Seman, P.J. Seman, Hope Tenorio, Olivia Walsh, Gabriel Walsh, and Pete Phair collected five medals and put up personal best times in every event they joined during their stint in the 2026 Buccaneer Invitational at St. Mary International School in Tokyo, Japan from Oct. 24-25.

In an event with over 250 swimmers from swim clubs across Japan, Philippines, and the CNMI, Tenorio led the medal haul with three medals—a silver in the 100m butterfly, along with bronze medals in the 50m butterfly and 100m freestyle. With that, she placed fourth in her age group.

Olivia Walsh won the team’s two other medals—a silver medal in the 200m freestyle and bronze in the 50m freestyle. She also placed sixth overall in points for her age group with 22.50 points.

The team also recorded 22 heat victories throughout the competition. Junior led the way with five wins, followed by Tenorio and Olivia with four each. Luke had three, two, and one heat wins, Gabriel added two, and Phair contributed one.

Coach Richard Sikkel, who was with the team along with coach David Roberto, said the swimmers did well during the event. “They were focused on their races and swam their race plans. It was good to see them take charge of their time management, warm ups, and call in for their events.”

He added, “As with many events, the goal is to have the swimmers experience the feel of a race, manage their pre race jitters, and for them to swim their best race.”

Next year, Sikkel said, they plan to return in March with a larger team. “The Japan teams were all asking when our next race is, because they remember competing in Saipan. We had to tell them to be patient until the pool gets constructed at Oleai Sports [Complex].”