AirAsia brings Olympians to train young Filipino swimming talents
MANILA, 17 March 2018 – Sixty young Filipino swimmers from across the country learned competitive swimming skills from AquaElite coaches - former Olympian Anthony James and Malta National swimmer Matthew Zammit under the AirAsia presents Ben Proud’s Talent Pool programme held in Rizal Memorial Sports Complex, Manila.
James is an English competitive swimmer who has represented Great Britain in the Olympics while Zammit is an international swimmer from Malta. They are part of the annual talent development programme jointly organized by AirAsia and British Olympic medallist Ben Proud. The partnership aims to support the Olympian’s journey towards qualifying for Summer Olympics in Tokyo, Japan in 2020.
AirAsia Philippines CEO Captain Dexter Comendador said, “AirAsia’s success story has inspired so many people to dream big and we are delighted to bring this inspiration to a sport that is so well-loved. Through coaching clinics with World Champion athletes, AirAsia is taking part of the journey that encourages and empowers young talents to strive and become future Olympic medallists.”
The 60 local participants were shortlisted by local swimming clubs and schools from Bulacan, Iloilo, Bicol, Cavite and Metro Manila. Two best swimmers will be chosen to compete with other best swimmers from swimming clinics scheduled in Cebu, Singapore, Thailand and Australia.
The intensive training camp includes gym sessions to improve strength and body conditioning, classroom sessions focused on sports psychology and physiology, as well as swimming sessions to improve tactical aspects of competitive swimming.
Ben Proud is part of AirAsia's #DARETODREAM athlete line-up alongside national prides including track cyclists Azizulhasni Awang and Fatehah Mustapa as well as diver Leong Mun Yee. AirAsia is also working with promising bodybuilder athlete Faiz Ariffin and go-kart driver Muizzuddin Musyaffa, sponsorships of the AirAsia Malaysia Rugby League and AirAsia KL Junior League, with more plans for the campaign in the pipeline.
Follow AirAsia’s Dream journey through the hashtag #daretodream or the latest AirAsia news and activities on Twitter (twitter.com/AirAsia) and Facebook (facebook.com/AirAsia).
Keep updated with AirAsia’s latest promotion and activities via twitter (@AirAsiaFilipino), Facebook (facebook.com/AirAsiaPH) and on Instagram (@AirAsiaFilipino).