Emily Santos and Tyler Christianson have been announced as Panama’s representatives for swimming at the Tokyo 2021 Olympics. Santos will race the women’s 100 breaststroke while Chistrianson will swim the men’s 200 breaststroke and 200 IM.
Santos, who swims at the Montverde Academy in Monteverde, Florida was nominated to the team based on her 1:11.43 100 breast which she swam at the 2021 UANA Tokyo Qualifier in Clermont, Florida. Santos just finished her freshman year at Monteverde and swam for the team at the 2021 Florida Senior Championships, collecting silver in both the 50 and 100 yard breaststrokes with a 30.16 and 1:04.60.
Santos also raced at the 2021 Puerto Rico International Swim in May where she hit a 32.94 long course 50 breaststroke victory, a 1:12.33 100 breaststroke for silver, and a 2:42.60 for 7th in the 200 breast.
Back in 2019 Santos race for Panama at the Pan American Games in Lima, Peru, and placed 12th during the 100 breaststroke heats with a 1:12.39. She went on to race in the B final and delivered a 1:14.45 for 14th overall. Santos also made the trip to Budapest in 2019 for the 2019 World Junior Swimming Championships where she hit a 1:13.36 for 40th overall in the 100 breast.
Christianson, who will also be making his Olympic debut this year holds the national record in both of his Olympic events: the 200 IM and 200 breaststroke. He set both records back in 2019 at the US Open where he swam a 2:03.16 in the IM and a 2:15.79 in the breaststroke. He recently swam both of those events at the 2021 CCCAN Swimming Championships in June 2021 where he hit a 2:05.63 in the 200 IM and a 2:16.96 in the 200 breast.
Christianson represented Panama internationally at the 2019 Pan American Games in Peru and raced to 6th in the 200 IM (2:03.28), and to 10th in the 400 IM, setting a new national record in that event of 4:25.93.
Collegiately, Christianson just completed his freshman year at the University of Notre Dame. Christianson was named freshman of the year at Notre Dame, having qualified scored a number of points for the school at 2021 ACC CHampionships, and for qualifying to race at the NCAA Championships. At NCAAs, Christianson placed 24th in the 200 breast (1:54.57), 31st in the 400 IM (3:49.00), and 42nd in the 200 IM (1:46.04).
Panama’s most successful Olympic swimmer in recent years was Eileen Coparropa who raced to a 13th place finish in the women’s 50 free with a 25.37. That year she also raced the 100 freestyle and placed 30th with a 57.09 and Ismael Ortiz raced the men’s 100 free, finsihing 45th with a 51.47.