The long-awaited Olympic-sized swimming pool for the Cayman Islands will take a step closer to reality next week with the official ground-breaking ceremony planned for Friday 10 July.
The news was revealed in the 30 June meeting of Parliament’s Finance Committee by Sports Minister Isaac Rankin who promised that “all members of the House should be getting invitations soon to attend that.”
The quest for a 50-metre swimming pool for Cayman has gone on for decades, with the United Democratic Party administration agreeing to help build the aquatic facility as far back as 2003. Plans were sidelined after Hurricane Ivan hit in September the following year, but resurfaced under the Progressives government, only to be submerged again, this time by the 2008 global financial crisis.
Negotiations continued throughout the following decade, but then the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 sunk the plans once again.
Following Caymanian swimmer Jordan Crooks’ gold-medal-winning performance in the 50-metre freestyle at the World Championships, making him Cayman’s first world champion in any sport, the idea was back on the table with the government and Cayman Islands Aquatic Sports Association holding discussions.
The plans at that point focused on an aquatic centre near the existing Lions Aquatic Centre, which would be demolished and converted into a parking lot.
In addition to the 50-metre pool, the multipurpose facility is also understood to feature a gym and a 25-metre pool with an aquatherapy lane.
Last October, Compass TV reported that most of the equipment for the new centre was on site, with a building permit approved.
The swimming pool concept was welcomed by star athlete Crooks a few years ago.
“I hope that it happens,” he told the Compass in 2022. “I think this would be a big step in Cayman swimming, but I would like all the Cayman swimmers, young and old, to just remember it’s still possible with or without certain resources.”
He added that up-and-coming swimmers should not dwell on things that are not guaranteed, saying, “it will be a great resource, but just think about competition. Whatever you have, use it to the best of your ability.”
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