Pirates Week came to a close over the weekend and one of its vital figures is Mike Lockwood.
Lockwood ran Cayman’s national festival for over a decade and ensured it was a landmark event for these islands. When he passed on years ago, the celebration continued with a swim in his honour, namely the Mike Lockwood Memorial.
This year’s meet was graced by his son Michael Lockwood Junior, 23. The George Town native, who served as a timing official for the competition, states the event has a special place in his heart.
“I feel a very strong connection to it as it comes at my favourite time of year,” Lockwood Jr said. “It is named after my father for that reason and his past involvement in the Lion’s Club.”
The 2011 edition of the swim took place at the Lions Pool in George Town and attracted youngsters in the Under-20 age group. In addition to a few pirates the event, hosted by the Stingray Swim Club, featured 145 swimmers.
Among those competitors were a pair of visiting teams in Jamaica’s Y-speedos and the Cayman Brac Barracudas. Both would finish third and fourth respectively in the team standings, with the Camana Bay Aquatic Club and Stingray Swim Club earning the top marks.
Lockwood Jr, who works as an articled clerk, states the presence of those clubs is a positive not just for the meet but for Cayman swimming as a whole.
“I feel that Cayman swimming has seen a new genesis with the Camana Bay swim club and Stingray club competing with clubs from Jamaica. I hope to see the international aspect of the swim increase to other countries in the coming years.”
To no surprise a number of established swimmers competed in the event. Among them was Geoffrey Butler, 15, who won the 15 and over 50m free in 26.81s. A handful of the star competitors emerged winners in Simon Butler (Stingray Swim Club) and Coral Tomascik (Camana Bay Aquatic Club) in the 13-14 age group and Danielle Booth (Camana Bay) in the 15 and over category.
Lockwood Jr, who went for a swim himself during the meet, states the presence of aspiring talents proves the memorial’s importance to the development of swimming in Cayman.
“This meet is very important for our age group swimmers because it gives them a chance to qualify for various international meets such as CARIFTA.”
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