Heer Usadadiya led his new club Aqua Akii to a top 10 finish in the June 27-30 Uganda Swimming Federation (USF) National Championships held at Kampala Parents School, Naguru.
He started with an early stunner as he dominated the open category’s 800m freestyle to upset former national record holder John Kafumbe and also become the second Ugandan swimmer to go under nine minutes in the event.
Usadadiya clocked 8:58.45 to set a new national record leaving Seals’ Kafumbe (9:03.59) and Silverfin Academy’s Isaiah Kuc (9:40.94) settling for second and third respectively.
Despite just turning 15, Heer showed no nerves as he topped the 15-16 age group with 90 points.
In his age group, Heer topped the 100m backstroke with a 1:03.00 personal best (PB), 200m backstroke with a 2:13.77 PB, 200m butterfly with a 2:22.35 PB, 200m freestyle with a 2:01.57 PB, 200m individual medley with a 2:20.45 PB
He also finished third in the 100m freestyle also with a 56.55 PB, 4th in the 100m fly with a 1:05.30 PB, 5th in the 50m backstroke with a 30.12, and 12th in the 50m butterfly with a 30.41 PB.
“These recent national championships may give a glimpse of my past few months but will not come close to fully expressing the physical and emotional pain I put myself through to be where I am now.
I managed to barely snag the 800m overall National Record beating the previous one by .16 of a second and making a 8:58.45. This makes me the second and YOUNGEST Ugandan to break the 9 minute barrier in the event. I managed to get a handful of other medals and PBs but the 800m is what I am proudest of.
Putting myself aside, I was very proud to represent Aqua Akii and lead the swimmers of the team into this event with a positive and optimistic mindset,” Heer posted on his Instagram after the event.
