KAILUA-KONA — To capture the Triple Crown Race Series of open water swimming is tough as it not only demands consistency, but also exceptional speed and skill to navigate the waters on the Big Island. But on Sunday morning, Kamuela’s Kelan Kennedy and Holualoa’s Kiliheamaikalani Oka made it look easy as they zoomed through a field of over 200 swimmers to take the top male and female titles at the prestigious Kamakahonu 1-Mile swim race — subsequently putting a stamp on their 2024 Triple Crown campaigns as the overall series winners. Kennedy, who is just 16 years of age, won his first Kamakahonu title in a stellar time of 19 minutes and 8 seconds.
Not too far behind him were Waikoloa’s Nathaniel “X” Rose (17 years) in 19:15, and Kailua-Kona’s Ethan Ng (15 years) in 19:19. On the women’s side, 14-year-old Oka took a commanding lead from the start, and kept the momentum going all the way to Kamakahonu’s sandy beach to win in a fabulous time of 19:24. Kailua-Kona’s rising star, 13-year-old Millie Knudson claimed second with her time of 20:11, followed by Holualoa’s Noelani Vargas in third at 20:21.
The journey to the Triple Crown championship began in May with the Anaehoomalu Splash, followed by the challenging Hapuna Rough Water Swim in June, and culminated with Sunday’s Kamakahonu swim. While each 1-mile event within the swim series presented unique challenges with varying water conditions, the ultimate honor of being crowned the Triple Crown champion .
