Cayman national swimmers took to the pool inside the Camana Bay Aquatic Centre, on Saturday, 23 March, at the official CARIFTA send-off event, where they finetuned their techniques ahead of next month’s competition.
The Cayman Islands Aquatic Sports Association announced earlier this month that 61 local athletes will represent at the 2024 CARIFTA Championships, across swimming, synchro and open water.
Athletes participating in competitive pool swimming and open water swimmers will head to the Bahamas where racing will take part from 28 March to 3 April, while the synchronised swimmers will take their artistic routines to Coral Springs, Florida.
At last year’s CARIFTA in Curaçao, Cayman recorded its best score ever, hauling in 53 medals and finishing second overall on the high point board. CIASA technical director Jacky Pellerin believes Cayman will still contest on the scoreboard but there are several factors to consider.
“We remain a small island with only three clubs providing swimmers for CARIFTA,” Pellerin said, noting that the hope is to have athletes from John Gray Swim Club and Cayman Brac take part in the future.
“We are working on that, but the process is long. This year, the public should expect to see new swimmers providing results. Our 11 and 12 year olds will be really interesting to see,” he added.
However, swimmers like Lila Higgo, who was the 15-17 age group high point winner at last year’s event, will be missing from this CARIFTA.
“One of our key swimmers will not come because she’s going to a tiered pro meet in the US. So, we will miss some points there,” Pellerin admitted.
Other top swimmers, like James Allison, Harper Barrowman and Jillian Crooks, who will be competing at CARIFTA for the final time, will attempt to pick up where they left off – collecting silverware and points for team Cayman.
According to CIASA officials, some of the athletes have left Cayman already, and some will travel on Wednesday, 27 March.
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