Cayman has been held spellbound as four of its best athletes compete at the world’s biggest sporting event in Paris, France, with Jordan Crooks swimming his way into the 50m freestyle final.
From the Olympic opening ceremony where Cayman representatives were clad in striking blue blazers and traditional khakis, to siblings Jillian and Jordan Crooks competing in the pool, the Summer Games have given those watching from home something to cheer about.
In a unique twist on the traditional Olympic opening ceremony, the parade of 206 participating nations took place on the water with a fleet of brightly coloured boats winding a 6-kilometre route along the Seine.
Charlotte Webster shared the honour of bearing her home flag with swimmer Jordan Crooks during the rainy festivities that concluded at the Eiffel Tower, with an estimated 600,000 people taking in the scenes in the French capital.
For Cayman’s athletes Crooks, his sister Jillian Crooks, Webster and Davontè Howell, the ceremony was spectacular from start to finish.
But the fun and festivities eventually came to a close and the competitive frame of mind switched on for Cayman’s athletes, beginning on Tuesday, 30 July, with the Crooks siblings.
Charlotte Webster
Webster made her Olympic sailing debut in the Bay of Marseille, France, on Thursday, 1 Aug, finishing 41st in her first of 10 races in the women’s dinghy event.
The second race of the day in the women’s dinghy event was postponed due to a lack of wind at Marseille Marina.
Should Webster qualify for the medal race, that competition will take place on 6 Aug.
Speaking with the Cayman Compass on Wednesday, 31 July, Webster said she understands the bay will be filled with the best sailors, but that won’t deter her from pushing to show the world what she is made of.
“I can say that I am feeling confident in all of my training and preparation going forward into this competition,” Webster said.
“It’s definitely the biggest competition of my life and I know the stakes are high for a lot of the girls, but I feel confident in my ability, and I feel like this training and preparation is going to pay off.”
Webster, now cutting her own path through the waves, looks to reach the pinnacle in the sport of sailing for her nation, and the only thing on her mind is to do her best in every race.
“I am really excited for what the next five days hold,” she said. “It’s definitely going to be some of the hardest racing, but I know I’ll learn a lot.”
Jillian Crooks
Jillian, 18, the fastest Caymanian female swimmer ever, made her second Olympic Games appearance.
She stopped the clock at 56.15 in heat two of the 100-metre freestyle at the Paris La Defense Arena, but her time did not qualify her for the next round and she placed 23rd overall.
“This race was a learning experience and I’m very glad that I was able to get up and go and race for my country,” Crooks said. “Once again, have fun with it, and it’s just a race.”
Jillian – Cayman’s youngest Olympian, having represented at her first Olympics at the Tokyo Games in 2021 at just 15, was .97 off her personal best in Paris.
Though it wasn’t her desired result, she admitted that it wasn’t surprising considering how her season had been leading up to Paris. However, the always positive Jillian said she was happy regardless of the race and the atmosphere.
“It was very loud and helped motivate all the athletes in my heat and in the heat before me as well,” she said. “Going back on my time, I’m pretty happy with it where I am in my season right now.”
Jordan Crooks
Prior to Jillian’s 100m free heat, her older brother Jordan competed earlier in the morning in his 100m free heat.
Jordan, 22, posted a time of 48.01 seconds after a splendid swim in heat 10, which earned him a spot in the semi-finals later that day.
Ultimately, Crooks finished 13th overall with a time of 48.10 seconds and did not progress to the final, where Chinese star Pan Zhanle took gold with a new world record of 46.40 seconds.
Speaking after his 100m semi, Crooks, “[I] gave it my best, it just wasn’t enough to make it to the final. I know I could be faster, but it didn’t happen on this day.”
On Thursday morning in his 50m free heat, Crooks clocked a new national record time of 21.51 seconds, to advance to the semi-finals.
He finished second over the likes of Caeleb Dressel of the US in heat 10 and was seeded as the second-fastest swimmer going into the semi-finals. He finished first in his semi, and is seeded fourth in Friday’s final.
“It’s a good swim,” he said of his 50m heat. “I think it could be, hopefully, a little faster but I’m grateful to have a [personal best]. So, regardless of what happens I’m grateful for that… on to semis,” Crooks said after his race.
“Last year was Worlds and that was a huge PB for me then, so, just trying to use that as the standard to jump past that, beat those times. I wasn’t able to do that in the 100 but I’m happy to be able to do it in the 50.”
Related Videos
