Lincoln College Swimmer to Represent Home Country at Youth Olympics

[October 08, 2018] 

A member of the Lincoln College Women’s Swimming & Diving team will be in action soon as an Olympic athlete. LC freshman Roylin Akiwo will be representing her home country of Palau in the upcoming 2018 Youth Olympic Games taking place later this month in Buenos Aires, Argentina.

The Youth Olympics is an international event open to athletes 18 years of age or under. Akiwo, who is currently 17 years old, will be making her first appearance at the Youth Olympics, however, the LC standout is no stranger to international competitions. Akiwo has experience competing on the world stage at the Swimming World Championships, the Pacific Games, and the Pan American Games, as well as representing her country in the Oceania, and Micronesian Games.

At the Youth Olympics, Akiwo, who is the Palau national record holder in the 100 Meter Backstroke, is scheduled to swim in the Women’s 50 Meter Freestyle on Tuesday, October 9th as well as the Women’s 50 Meter backstroke on Wednesday, October 10th.

Akiwo says she is excited about the opportunity and to represent her country and see the effort she has put into her sport pay off on an Olympic stage. “You have to fall in love with the process of becoming great,” she said. “I have worked hard to get where I am and will continue to work hard to achieve my ultimate goal of going to the Olympics. I see the Youth Olympics as a stepping stone to this dream.”

Akiwo comes to LC as a recipient of the 2018-2019 Oceania National Olympic Committee Foundation Scholarship.

Lincoln College Swimming & Diving Coach Johnathan Jordan is pleased to have a swimmer with Akiwo’s potential in his program. “We are excited to be adding Roylin to our team because she is a versatile athlete we will be able to put in many different events,” said Jordan. “She comes from a great program under coach Billy Brown who has set her up to do great things at the collegiate level of the sport. The team and I are looking forward to following Roylin’s swims next week at the Youth Olympics.”

Those interested in following Roylin Akiwo’s Olumpic journey can do so by accessing her Youth Olympic webpage at https://www.buenosaires2018. com/results/en/swimming/daily-schedule.htm?lng=en
 

[Mark Tippett
Lincoln College
Sports Information]