OUTSTANDING freestyle swimmer Kayla Sanchez, 32nd Cambodia Southeast Asian Games gold medalists Xiandi Chua and Teia Salvino plus veteran Jasmine Alkhaldi plunged into action yesterday in the heats of the 4×100-meter freestyle relay event of the 21st World Aquatics Championships in Doha, Qatar.
In their maiden partnership together, the four swimmers were scheduled to make their debut for the country in the world meet and were to see action in the first heat of the event at 4:32 p.m. (9:32 p.m. Manila time), hoping to advance to the finals later in the night.
“Xiandi has decided to scratch from the 200-meter individual medley and focus on the 4×100-meter relay,” said the swimmer’s father, Roy Chua, of the pet event where she won a gold medal in the last 32nd Cambodia SEA Games with a new SEAG and national record of two minutes and 13.20 seconds.
The elder Chua was unaware in what order the four swimmers would be racing at the impressive Aspire Aquatic Center, although it was possible that Sanchez could be tapped in the fourth and last leg of the relay considering she has the best time of 53.12 seconds in the event.
Besides the four swimmers, the other members of the national swimming team competing in the meet serving as a qualifying event to the Paris Olympic Games in July are Jarrod Hatch, Jerard Jacinto and Tanya dela Cruz.
