DVIDS – Information – Kadena youth athletes make a splash throughout swim meet cultural alternate

Student athletes from the Kadena Whale Sharks Swim Team competed with Okinawan college students representing eight native faculties throughout the U.S. – Ryukyu Friendship Swimming time trial, at Mawashi High School, Japan, March 21, 2026.

The occasion marked the primary time that college students from Kadena participated in a joint swim meet with native athletes, fostering an setting for sportsmanship locally. During the meet, college students have been built-in into two multi-school groups, then competed in 20 occasions, together with four-member relays, 50 meter races and 100 meter races.

“This is a big alternative for the scholars,” stated Arata Sato, Okinawa Swimming Federation chairperson. “This event will be a good first step toward future engagements.”

For the Whale Sharks, the meet was about extra than simply pushing limits and quick occasions within the pool, this was an opportunity to study extra in regards to the group and tradition they’re rising up round.

“We wanted to participate in this meet to get out into the local community, and it’s been an incredibly rewarding experience for our students,” said Cleveland Brown, Whale Sharks Swim Team coach. “I’m proud that the kids had the opportunity to represent Kadena and act as ambassadors in the community, and events like these open the doors to more meets in the future.”

Events like this one assist to offer a deeper mutual understanding by way of cultural alternate amongst Japanese and American college students, and proceed to strengthen the U.S.-Japanese partnership.