By Edwin Rollon
Olympic medalist Kyla Sanchez bannered a strong field of local and foreign-based bets as the 2025 National Swimming Team Tryouts opened Friday at the Teófilo Yldefonso Swimming Center inside the historic Rizal Memorial Sports Complex in Manila.
Sanchez, who won a relay silver medal for Canada in the Tokyo 2020 Olympics before switching allegiance to the Philippines in 2022, is widely regarded as the country’s top female swimmer. The 24-year-old Fil-Canadian has set several national records but has yet to deliver a podium finish for the Philippines in the SEA Games, Asian Games, and Olympics.
Despite this, Philippine Aquatics, Inc. (PAI) Secretary-General Eric Buhain expressed confidence that Sanchez remains on track for a breakthrough performance.
“At 24, Kyla is at the peak of her career. She trained very hard in Canada and the national tryouts is the best venue to see how far she has come, with still four months before the SEA Games in Bangkok,” said Buhain, himself an Olympian and a Philippine Sports Hall-of-Famer. “Of course, the locals will give their all in the swim-offs against Kyla.”
Buhain reiterated that no swimmer has an automatic slot in the national squad. The qualifying benchmark is based on the sixth-place times recorded in each event at the 2023 SEA Games in Cambodia.
The tryouts, which run until Sunday (August 24), drew 227 swimmers, including 15 foreign-based athletes, representing 37 PAI-member clubs and organizations. Leading officials led by PAI president Miko Vargas, Philippine Sports Commission (PSC) Chairman Patrick “Pato” Gregorio, and Commissioner Fritz Gaston joined Buhain at the opening rites set at 8:00 am.
Apart from Sanchez, foreign-based standouts to watch include Fil-Ams Gian Santos and Adrian Eichler, both fresh from representing the country in the World Aquatics Championship in Singapore, and 17-year-old Fil-British Heather White, a silver medalist in the 2024 Asian Age Group Championship in New Clark City.
The local contingent is bannered by 2023 SEA Games gold medalists Xiandi Chua (200m backstroke), and Thea Salvino (100m backstroke), Asian Age-Group champion Jamesray Mishael Ajido, junior star Jasmine Mojdeh, Fil-Am prodigy Riannah Chantelle Coleman, and seasoned internationalist Jerard Jacinto.
According to PAI executive director Anthony Reyes, the top two finishers in each event will earn spots in the national training pool.
