THE Behrouz Elite Swimming Team (BEST) delivered a dominant campaign at the 3rd Asian Open Schools Invitational (AOSI) Short Course Swimming Championships, hauling in a massive total of 18 gold, seven silver, and five bronze medals at the Assumption University Aquatics Center Suvarnabhumi in Bangkok, Thailand.
Leading the charge for the Philippine squad was La Salle Green Hills standout Behrouz Mohammad Madi Mojdeh, who achieved a sensational six-event sweep in the boys’ 15-year division.
Mojdeh capped off his stellar run by setting two new tournament records: 2:12.31 in the 200m Individual Medley (IM) and 2:26.53 in the 200m breaststroke.
He completed his six-gold sweep with victories in the 200m backstroke, 200m butterfly, 100m butterfly, and 200m freestyle events.
Complementing Mojdeh’s flawless run, La Salle Zobel swimmer Therese Annika Quinto turned in an equally imposing performance in the girls’ 15-year class, capturing six individual gold medals and one relay gold.
Quinto dominated the pool with victories in the 50m freestyle, 100m freestyle, 50m backstroke, 100m backstroke, 50m butterfly, and 100m IM, before helping anchor the girls’ team to gold in the 4x50m freestyle relay.
Fellow La Salle Zobel swimmer Clara Maligat also delivered a record-breaking haul, snatching four gold medals and three silvers.
Maligat set a new mark in the 200m butterfly with a time of 2:31.68 while also taking gold in the 25m butterfly, 100m butterfly, and the 4x50m freestyle relay. She added silver medals in the 100m freestyle, 50m butterfly, and 200m freestyle.
Rounding out the team’s victory train, Athena Denise Custodio of La Salle Zobel claimed a gold medal in the 4x50m freestyle relay alongside a bronze in the 200m breaststroke.
Mikhael Jasper “Mikee” Mojdeh from Immaculate Heart of Mary College-Parañaque secured two silvers in the 200m IM and 200m freestyle, plus three bronzes in the 100m freestyle, 50m backstroke, and 100m backstroke.
Finally, Nino Angelo Pugay contributed to the squad’s medal tally by adding a silver in the 200m butterfly and a bronze in the 200m IM.
“As a proud mom of these kids — yes, all BEST swimmers are my kids! I felt such a huge sense of pride watching them. I remember when they were younger, just playing hide-and-seek inside our house or running around the backyard every time we had team bonding. And look at them now,” said BEST team manager Joan Mojdeh.
“I’m so used to handling elite swimmers, knowing everyone’s PBs, stroke styles, and almost everything. Honestly, from the initial assessment, I just thought these kids would do OK. Ngl, handling the 1st gen, they switched on pretty early at 11, 12, or 13. But this batch is 15, and they’re just getting started — and I really think that is the best age to do it,” she added.
