During her speech, Yuri talked about her native home in Palau, as well as her academic experience at Xavier High School in Chuuk, Federated States of Micronesia. She admitted that growing up in a closed environment made it especially challenging for her to cross the ocean all the way to Japan to attend university. She emphasized that her achievements could not have been made alone; APIC’s Scholarship Fund expanded the possibilities available to her, enabling her to continue her competitive swimming while matriculating in the Department of Education at Sophia University, becoming the University’s first Olympian in the 2024 Paris Olympics.

APIC continues to expand its Xavier Scholarship Program to help the upcoming generations in the Micronesia region use their Japanese university education to become invaluable assets in both their respective home countries and Japan.