Athletes from the Cayman Islands have always shown resilience during the Commonwealth Games, though rarely making the podium, but for the first time in the nation’s history, it can claim a gold medal in karate.
Caymanian Nick Young, a senior Kata athlete, touched down in Durban, South Africa, for the Commonwealth Karate Federation 2024 Club Championships and won the masters division – something he said he had thought might happen.
“Things just seem to be falling together, and I just had a good feeling leading up to this event,” Young told the Compass.
The tournament featured 505 athletes, across 18 countries, with Cayman being one of two Caribbean nations represented.
Young first competed in the male Kata division where he won his first round against Zimbabwe before losing to South Africa in the second round.
However, he would return to the mats for the masters, where he found redemption against South Africa in round one, three flags to none; India in round two, two flags to one; and Kenya in round three, three flags to none, to claim the gold.
“It felt great,” he said. “I didn’t worry about the fact that they’re all these great competitors from different countries who have a really long track record of accomplishments. I just said I’m going to have to do this, I’m not going to worry about the scores or the outcome, I’m just going to give this my hundred percent.”
His efforts paid off, as he secured his country’s first gold medal in the sport of karate and joined the list of Cayman medalists at Commonwealth-sanctioned competitions.
‘Punching way above’
The first medal for Cayman at the Commonwealth Games was a bronze from long jumper Kareem Streete-Thompson in 2002, followed by a gold from sprinter Cydonie Mothersille at the 2010 games.
Julian Jervis and Cameron Stafford also joined the silverware list after winning gold in the plate final at the 2022 games in squash, and Young’s teammate Zuzana Leitmannova secured a bronze in the Kata veterans female category the same year.
Cayman has also made the podium at the Commonwealth Youth Games, most recently in swimming, where Jillian Crooks and James Allison made waves, in addition to Andrew Stone’s historic long jump.
Young, who had competed in 10 international competitions for Cayman without medalling, said he felt like his journey has been taken from a movie script, from not getting a medal at all to taking the gold, a testament to his hard work.
“It’s kind of a surreal,” he said. “Everything started to come together within the last three months of training. I’ve been trying for the last two years for this; the last one was in Birmingham, England and since then I’ve been training.”
He primarily trained at the Cayman Associated School of Karate under coach Patrick Brendel, who told the Compass that he had watched his athlete progress over the last couple of years.
“He has had a tremendous amount of growth in a few short years,” Brendel said, noting that it was a reflection of the national programme and its success. “And just like Nick, when we go to these tournaments, Cayman is always punching way above its weight.”
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