Ajido, White claims bronze in AACG

CAPAS, TARLAC – With eight finalists missing their chances for the podium on Day 1, Word Junior Championships veteran Fil-Brit Heather White and fellow national junior record holder Jamesray Mishael Ajido stopped the bleeding for Team Philippines, winning the bronze medal in their respective class Tuesday night, in the 11^th Asian Age Group Championships at the New Clark City Aquatics Center here.

The Vietnam-based White, a 16-year-old Filipino-British, finished strong in the girls’ 15-17 butterfly, registering her personal best time of 1:03.09.

Hong Kong’s Hoi Ching Yeung captured the gold medal at 1:00.50, smashing Japanese Aki Obata’s 1:00.73 record set in 2009, while teammate Sze Ki Mok got the silver medal at 1:02.73.

“I am so happy; I wasn’t expecting much before the race. I was still recovering from the 50m freestyle so to have that big win after my loss, it was so amazing,” said White, who clocked 26.68 to finish fifth in the 50m freestyle on Monday behind Kazakhstan’s Sofiya Abubakirova (26.25), Chinese Taipei’s Pei Hsuan Li (26.28), Japan’s Rimika Taira (26.31) and Hong Kong’s Gilaine Ma (26.54).

Ajido of Antipolo City splashed his way to the bronze medal in the boys 12-14 50m freestyle with a time of 24.34, a personal best and a national record.

Japan’s Toya Hirata captured the gold medal in 23.21, a new meet record that broke the 24.03 times set by compatriot Yuga Takashima in 2019.

“This is special for me. I am proud to win a medal for the Philippines,” said Ajido, a Grade 8 student at La Salle Greenhills. He won the 100m butterfly and 100m backstroke gold medals in the National Collegiate Athletic Association Season 99.

“I dedicate this victory to the Lord and my family,” added the 15-year-old who pocketed five gold and one bronze medals at the Batang Pinoy National Championships last December.

Meanwhile, Philippine Sports Commission chairman Richard Bachmann commended White and Ajido during a visit on Wednesday.

“Congratulations to the athletes and everyone involved in making this happen,” said Bachmann, who was welcomed by David Carter, the local organizing committee’s chief operating officer.

On Tuesday, Japan leads the medal tally board with 20 golds, 11 silvers, and four bronzes.

Kazakhstan is second with ten golds, seven silvers and two bronzes followed by Thailand (9-7-12), Hong Kong (9-7-8), Vietnam (8-10-11), Chinese Taipei (3-11-6), India (2-4-2), Macau (2-1-1), Iran (1-2-4), Kyrgyzstan (1-0-0), Uzbekistan (0-2-2), China (0-1-1), Malaysia (0-0-4), Qatar (0-0-3) and Mongolia (0-0-2).