[8] He worked as a sixth-grade science teacher at Puunene School in Maui, Hawaii, and initially knew little about swimming, having confined his early coaching to track and field.

As a science teacher and track coach, he learned the value of sprint training in developing cardio-vascular fitness and speed for his athletes.

[8] Lacking a pool until 1940, when the club's patron, the Hawaiian Commercial and Sugar Company built one at Baldwin Park, Sakamoto had his early students train in the Hawaiian Sugar Cane Company's irrigation ditches, swimming against the current,[8] a form of resistance training, used to build strength without the use of weights.

Sakamoto also had his swimmers cross-train on occasion by running track to improve speed, a form of dryland training.

[10] The name of the club, which had a membership as large as 100, reflected Sakamoto's goal of getting his pupils on the Olympic team in three years, and most members signed three-year contracts to diligently pursue their training, while refraining from smoking and drinking.

[8][18] Sakamoto was known to carefully examine the stroke of each of his swimmers individually and build on their strengths, while eliminating any flaws or inefficiencies.

Meticulous in planning detailed strategy, he carefully timed each swimmer's strokes per minute to determine the cadence required to win a particular event.

[19] His most outstanding students include: By 1958, early AAU national champions Sakamoto coached included Keo Nakama, Halo Hirose, Fujiko Katsutani, Chic Miyamoto, Bunmei Nakama, and Jose Balmores.

"[15] In October 2015, Julia Checkoway published her book The Three-Year Swim Club: The Untold Story of Maui’s Sugar Ditch Kids and Their Quest for Olympic Glory (Grand Central Publishing, 2015, ISBN 1455523437), a New York Times bestseller according to Amazon.com.