Photo By Sgt. Mason Roy | A swimmer with the Marine Corps Air Station (MCAS) Iwakuni Tsunami Youth Swim Team...... read more read more
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IWAKUNI CITY, Japan – The Marine Corps Air Station Iwakuni Tsunami Youth Swim Team and the Iwakuni City Ocean Swim Team participated in a swim meet in Iwakuni City, Japan, Oct. 28, 2018.
The event helped the Tsunamis demonstrate their training throughout the season by competing with a local swim team.
“My favorite part of today was watching the kids be able to accomplish the goals they’ve been setting,” said U.S. Marine Corps Master Sgt. Isaiah Kirk, communications chief with Headquarters and headquarters Squadron. “A lot of them [children] say I want to go to the Olympics, and a lot of these big goals take smaller and achievable goals to accomplish.”
The teams competed at Fitness Club Ocean, which contains a 25 meter pool rather than the 50 meter pool the Tsunamis are used to swimming in. By allowing these youth teams from different countries to compete it helped build cultural understanding and friendships among one another.
“We’ve invited the local Iwakuni swim team to our base [MCAS Iwakuni] for multiple years and this is the second year in a row they invited us to their swim meet so it’s an honor being here,” said Kirk.
As the teams pushed through each event they had their fellow swimmers cheering them on every stroke of the way.
“A lot of people say it’s not a team sport,” said Kirk. “The base donates its time and the pool, coaches and volunteers are donating 20 to 30 hours a week, and the swimmers are donating their time as well. It takes that coach to be here to coach, and the swimmer to be here to swim.”
Kirk says that his daughter’s passion for swimming influenced him to become a volunteer coach for the Tsunamis.
“My daughters been a competitive swimmer for eight years,” said Kirk. “I found myself on the pool deck all the time watching her and decided I wanted to help out. Every time the kids are here they’re wide eyed, ready to go and excited. Coming together with events like this shows the youth that we can be friends, it builds comradery.”
| Date Taken: | 10.28.2018 |
| Date Posted: | 11.06.2018 00:03 |
| Story ID: | 298890 |
| Location: | IWAKUNI CITY, YAMAGUCHI, JP |
| Web Views: | 43 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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