Tonga – Another day, another record.
We kicked off day 2 with another strong performance from Team Tonga, once again securing five Personal Bests and a National Record for the second day running. In the Men’s 100m Butterfly, the day opened with an impressive swim from the youngest male swimmer Alexander Villami, who clocked a Personal Best of 1:07.37 in the 100m Butterfly – a great confidence boost for the rising swimmer.
Finau Ohuafi followed with a blazing heat swim that earned him third place in his heat and a new national record of 56.41 seconds. His morning swim booked him a place in the final, where he came back even faster, finishing 4th overall and resetting his National Record with a time of 56.16 seconds. A double-record day for Finau and a major milestone for Tongan swimming!
In the women’s 100m Butterfly, Tonga’s youngest swimmer in the event Luseane Latai Limoni swam a new PB of 1:20.19. Although Luseane said she was “nervous for the race”, she secured Personal Bests in all her races, showing great promise for the future. Another PB came from Carolann Faeamani, who delivered a smooth performance with a personal best time of 36.37 seconds.
Vaoahi Afu, one of Tonga’s national Breaststroke record holders coming into the Games, swam a strong heat to qualify for the final in the 50m Breaststroke. Ranking 4th with a time of 35:33 seconds, Vaoahi continued with that momentum improving on her morning swim in the final, resetting her PB at 35.18 seconds.
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Words & interviews: The Reporters’ Academy. Photos: Ryota Nishida