ISAIAH Aleksenko and Asaka Litulumar topped their respective categories in the 3K race hosted by the Saipan Swim Club on Saturday at Paupau Beach.
Aleksenko, who has always been a top contender in swim events, was able to prove his worth once again by ruling the men’s open category.
From start to finish, he had to battle with Jinnosuke Suzuki for the top position, but it was Aleksenko who rose first from the lagoon and raced to the finish line with a time of 34:32:00.
Suzuki finished second, 34:34:00; Taiyo Akimaru was third, 36:30:00; Juhn Tenorio was fourth, 34:33:00; and Jakey Deleon Guerrero completed the top five list with a time of 37:38:00.
Women’s
As for the women’s open category, Asaka Litulumar showed why she was one of the local swimmers who represented the CNMI in the 15th World Swimming Championships.
At Paupau Beach on Saturday, she reached the finish line with a time of 37:44:00.
In second place was Jinie Thompson, 39:17:00; Aoi Braxton was third, 40:12:00; Julia Jinang was fourth, 40:26:00; while Jessica Ma finished fifth, 43:21:00.
U14 Division
The top swimmers of the U14 division were Moshe Sikkel and Maria Batallones.
Sikkel finished first among the boys with a time of 37:16:00.
Michael Miller was a close second, clocking 37:17:00.
The rest of the top five were Kouki Watanabe, 37:44:00; Justin Ma, 40:34:00; and Richard Zhao, 42:16:00.
Among the U14 girls, Batallones was dominant, finishing first with a time of 37:56:00.
Kaya Braxton was second, 43:05:00; Nagisa Litulumar was third, 43:10:00; Sari Barman was fourth, 44:52:00; and Nagi Tenorio was fifth, 50:57:00.
Masters
In the men’s masters 35 and up category, Gary De Guzman topped the charts with a finish time of 46:02:00 beating Tamio Nishikido (47:43:00) and Boboy Aguilar (55:34:00).
In the women’s division, Kris Romero took first place with a time of 46:11:00, followed by Yulia Aleksenko (48:35:00) and Natalia Gvan (01:05:16).
The participants of the Saipan Swim Club 3K race at Paupau Beach pose for a photo on Saturday.
The swimmers push through at the start of the Saipan Swim Club 3K race Saturday at Paupau Beach.
