Vargas maps out Aquatics plans

It’s four years away from the Los Angeles Olympics but this early, Philippine Aquatics president Miko Vargas is laying the groundwork to qualify a homegrown swimmer with at least a selection B time and promote openwater swimming as a potential medal event.

- JOAQUIN HENSON

Jessie Lacuna was the last homegrown Filipino to represent the country at the 2016 Olympics and Vargas said he hopes to develop more Olympic qualifiers from the grassroots. “Swimmers like Xiandi Chua who almost made the cut in the 400m individual medley could be next in line,” he said. “Also young guns like James Rey Ajido, who’s 15, was a gold medalist at the 11th Asian Age Group. Riannah Coleman, 15, Gian Santos, 18 and Ava Bautista, 17 are other swimmers we are hopeful for in the near future. A plan is for open-water swimming, an Olympic event, to be a focus as we see it as our best chance to achieve a medal in aquatics. It’s a true