TACLOBAN CITY, (PNA) – Two Leyte Sports Academy scholars won the Philippines medals in the recently concluded 2015 Asian Junior Finswimming Championship held in Taipei, Taiwan.
Tehillah Juanico Mag-aso won the gold in the 1,500m and a bronze in the 800ss for girls. Another medal hauler was Jay Smith Traveno who won the silver in the 1,500ss for boys. Both Mag-aso and Traveno are pioneer scholars of LSA and hail from Baybay City.
The duo formed part of the eight-man Philippine contingent to Taipei for the finswimming competition on Nov. 3 to 9, 2015. They were the only two medal earners for the Philippines.
Countries that competed in the 2015 Asian Junior Finswimming included China, Japan, South Korea, Kazakstan, Indonesia, Vietnam, Hongkong, Taipei and the Philippines.
Leyte Governor Leopoldo Dominico Petilla said he is proud of the LSA scholars’ achievement this year in the international and local arena.
The governor added the province will continue to nurture and grow so that Leyte’s young sports goldmines will be given opportunities to compete around the country and in foreign lands.
Finswimming is an underwater sport consisting of four techniques involving swimming with the use of fins either on the water’s surface using a snorkel with either monofins or bifins or underwater with monofin either by holding one’s breath or using open circuit scuba diving equipment.
Events exist over distances similar to swimming competitions for both swimming pool and open water venues.
Competition at world and continental level is organised by the Confédération Mondiale des Activités Subaquatiques (CMAS)
The sports first world championship was held in 1976. It also has been featured at the world games as a trend sport since 1981 and was demonstrated at the 2015 european games in june 2015. PNA.
