TAIPEI — Tana Verzo, an eight-year-old second-grader from De La Salle Zobel, ruled the 50-meter breaststroke for the Philippines’ lone gold in the five-nation CITI Invitational Swim Meet 2007 at the Taipei American School here.
Tana competed in the two-day invitational meet along with 12 other young Filipino swimmers from the Fighting Orcas Swim Club coached by Susan Papa.
Tana also won a pair of silver medals in the 50m butterfly and 100m breaststroke, three bronzes in the 200m individual medley and the 200m and 400m freestyle.
The Fighting Orcas from Alabang, Muntinlupa, collected one gold, five silver and nine bronze medals.
“I am proud of my swimmers,” said Papa, the former age-group internationalist. “Their performance was way beyond my expectations.”
A total of 250 swimmers from 13 clubs in Taiwan, Beijing, Shanghai, Thailand, United States and the Philippines saw action in the annual invitationals.
Other Orca medalists: Josef Dos Remedios, three silvers; Lana Bosch, two bronzes; Vincent Alvarez, one bronze; Nicole Alvarez, Jaime Tiongson, Ernestine Tiongson, and Tana Verzo, bronze medalists in girls’ relay; Hilario Davide IV, Rafael Santiago, Vincent Alvarez and Hans Ramos, bronze medalist in boys’ relay.
