Newcomer Chris Dart, a coach at the Camana Bay Aquatic Club, won the 30th annual Foster’s Food Fair IGA 800-meter sea swim Saturday.
The Cayman Islands Amateur Swimming Association hosted the event from Public Beach to Governor’s Beach.
Iain McCallum was second and Cole Morgan third. Catriona MacRae was the fastest woman.
Dart, 23, is one of the few winners of any Cayman Islands sea swim in recent years who is not a teenager.
Considering he is a former Great Britain junior international, specializing in backstroke, that is not surprising. His kids had the rare experience of seeing one of their coaches out-swimming them.
Dart had taken a break from competitive swimming since arriving here a year ago from a coaching stint in Tampa.
This swim was the start of Dart’s return to competition, and he hopes to qualify for the British team by competing at the U.S. national championships next summer.
“I loved this swim, although the sea was a bit rough,” Dart said. “It was a fun race. The kids are pretty fast and they did make me feel a bit younger. I love it in Cayman. What is there not to like?”
Dart’s next race may be the Cayman Brac 800m on Sept. 27; otherwise it will be another 800m next month.
Working for Dart Enterprises has been entertaining, he said, because people assume he is a family member. “Having Dart as a last name is sort of cool,” he said adding he likes keeping them guessing whether he is part of the billionaire dynasty.
Dart was born in the U.K., and he and his family moved from Brentwood, Essex, to the United States when he was four.
Dart said he likes the swimming setup in Cayman, and he is grateful to sponsors like Foster’s Food Fair. The store’s managing director, Woody Foster, said he was pleased with the turnout of 158, adding, “I’m very happy. I swam this year with my daughter Charli, who is six. It was her first time.”
Shane Foster also swam, and several other Foster’s members and staff did the beach walk.
Besides prizes for the winners in standard categories, there were extra prizes for all participants and for beach walkers. Proceeds went to Foster’s Food Fair’s wellness program.
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