Romio Hayahune

Romio Hayahune (早船 ロミオ Hayahune Romio) is a supporting character in the anime series Free! beginning with Free!-Dive to the Future-. He is a first-year high school student at Iwatobi High School and a new member of the Iwatobi High School Swim Club under Rei Ryugazaki's captaincy.

Appearance
Romio is a young man of medium height, with blue eyes and short orange hair parted to the right. During training, he wears the usual uniform of the Swim Club, but during relays, he wears blue swim briefs with yellow stripes and green goggles.

Personality
He is an affable and enthusiastic young man who is dedicated to his team and to his sport.

History
Romio was born in New York City in the United States, then emigrated with his family to Japan and lived for some time in Tokyo. He finally moved to Iwatobi Town and enrolled in Iwatobi High School where he joined the Iwatobi High School Swim Club following the graduation of Haruka Nanase and Makoto Tachibana. Things were going well until he froze at a tournament which forced him to reveal that at a previous tournament in junior high, he false-started causing that tournament to be that team's last. This experience resulted in Romio developing athletic performance anxiety; however, with the help of his teammates, he overcomes this obstacle.

Story
He first appears when Nagisa Hazuki wants to take photos of the new club members and send them to Makoto Tachibana. Later, Romio can be seen practicing with the Iwatobi Swimming Club as the team begins preparations for the All-Japan Invitational. When fellow rookie, Shizuru Isurugi, finds the guide from Gou Matsuoka's island training camp, Romio says that he wants the training camp to be held in another country.