Enot, Mojdeh pluck SEA Age Group silver medals

Ivo Nikolai Enot and Micaela Jasmine Mojdeh plucked silver medals to complete the national junior swimming squad’s impressive showing in the 46th Southeast Asian Age Group Championships recently at Assumption University in Bangkok.

The 18-year-old Enot, a University Athletic Association of the Philippines multi-medalist from Ateneo de Manila University, added a silver to his medal collection after posting 26.86 seconds to finish second behind Jason Donovan Yusuf of Indonesia (26.40 seconds) in the boys 16-18 backstroke.

Also, Mojdeh, a national junior record holder, clocked two minutes and 21.43 seconds behind Thi Thuy Trang of Thailand (2:18.55) to capture her second silver medal in the girls 16-18 200m butterfly event.

Mojdeh earlier won a silver in the 100m butterfly event with a clocking of 1:03.40 to wrap up her junior career in style and underscore the Filipinos’ performance of eight medals in this prestigious regional tourney.

Also submitting an impressive performance was the national artistic swimming squad, which won a silver medal while Carmina Sanchez Tan finished second in the women’s solo freestyle event.

Formed by the Philippine Aquatics Inc. (PAI) through intensive national tryouts, the 12-man artistic swimming squad captured one gold, six silver, and one bronze medals.

“Our youth program is like a gift that keeps on giving, and the PAI is truly proud of our young athletes for keeping the winning spirit alive despite huge and tough challenges,” said PAI secretary general Eric Buhain, who was greatly impressed by the Filipino tankers’ impressive performance highlighted by the record-breaking feat of Jamesray Ajido in the boys 14-15 50m butterfly event.

Ajido, a Grade 9 student at La Salle Green Hills, was a force to be reckoned with as he clocked 25.52 seconds to erase the five-year meet record tallied by Vietnamese Nguyen Hoang Khang.