PAEA AND PRESCOTT PUT IN SOLID PERFORMANCES

PAEA AND PRESCOTT PUT IN SOLID PERFORMANCES

Ifa Paea’s second race of these championships came in the Men’s 100m Butterfly. His first race saw him collect a personal best in the 100m Freestyle.  He competed in the 100m Butterfly competition two years ago in Barcelona, where he recorded a time of 56.32 seconds. He was determined to beat this time and his efforts prevailed in Glasgow, a year later. His Commonwealth Games performance earned him a time of 55.62 seconds setting a new Personal Best (P.B.) and National Record.

His finishing time on Day 6 was just outside that mark in a time of 55.80 seconds.

“ I really thought I could go under 55 seconds. I felt really, really comfortable but I thought I could go faster. I’m not too disappointed. It’s only the second time I’ve done a 55 (seconds).

His time ranked him in 52^nd place in these World Championships and with the Olympics now in sight, he is aware of what he has to do; “Make the qualifying time for Rio which is 54.19 seconds.”

At just twenty-one years of age it is an incredible achievement to compete in one World Championship, but to compete in two is a sign of hard work and commitment. This is the case for Tonga’s Irene Prescott who competed two years ago in Barcelona and is now attending the Kazan version of the FINA swim meet.

She started swimming aged eleven and cites her first World Championships, in 2013, as her most memorable event. It was here she set the time of 30.97 seconds.

The 50m Butterfly was her first event, in the Kazan Arena, and being on Day 6 of the event, the Tongan admitted that: “I’ve been waiting for this event for a long time”.

 The race itself contained four other Pacific Islanders, with three of them joining her in Heat Two. After achieving a time of 31.90 seconds, she commented that;

“It was alright I thought I could go a little bit faster but it’s my first race. I think my start was good but I lost the catch of the water at the end but it was alright”.

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This article was produced by Mike Marron of The Reporters' Academy, a media production company run by young people, tasked with the mission of telling the stories of Oceania's swimmers at the World Championships in Kazan. The Reporters' Academy is integrated into the world of media, education and employment, dedicated to changing the lives of young people across Oceania and the UK.

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