PRESS RELEASE – Guam Swimming Federation (GSF) today announced Team Guam selection for the 19th FINA World Championships.
Benjamin Ko, Mia Lee, Israel Poppe and Keana Santos will represent Guam in Budapest, Hungary from June 18-July 3, 2022. Swimmers competed in GSF’s Spring 2022 time trials on Saturday, April 9, 2022 in four events including the 200m Freestyle, 100m Freestyle, 100m Butterfly and 200m Individual Medley.
“It was an exciting morning having the swimming community come together for this time trial, after years of setbacks due to pool closures and COVID restrictions. Despite these challenges, Guam swimmers have continued to find ways to train and prepare themselves for the highest levels of competition,” said Ed Ching, GSF President. “We will take advantage of this and every opportunity to push our swimmers to compete, elevate the sport and represent Guam.
Benjamin Ko and Mia Lee will make their FINA debut at the World Championships in June. Tamuning resident and a junior at John F. Kennedy High School (JFK), Ko enjoys music and reading novels. Mia Lee is set to be the youngest female to ever represent Guam at the FINA World Championships. Lee is a St. John’s School freshman, scholar athlete, avid reader, and community volunteer.
Israel Poppe and Keana Santos represented Guam at the FINA World Championships in Abu Dhabi in December 2021. Santos is a freshman at JFK, who enjoys local and international swim competitions, drawing, surfing, and scuba diving. A current high school freshman, Poppe has been a swimmer since he was 4 years old. Poppe is also an active member of his church and enjoys off-roading and video games.
The Guahan Junior Barbarians represented Guam well in Singapore. The girls U18 took first place in their division in the 13th Centaurs International Youth Rugby Tournament while the boys captured second place playing ironman rugby with no subs.
