NIGEL FORBES STANDS TALL AT CCCAN,WINS REGIONAL BREASTSTROKE TRIPLE CROWN (UNANA,CARIFTA AND CCCAN TITLES) EN ROUTE TO FIVE GOLD AND TWO SILVER

At the recently concluded CCCAN swimming Championships held in Aruba Nigel Forbes continued his epic season in an 11-12 age group division which was brimming with talent. Forbes stood tall among his peers in the breaststroke for 2018 and was unbeaten for the season in that stroke .

50 metre breaststroke medallists from left to right Blackman, Forbes and Trejos Photo courtesy of CCCAN

It would be the 50 metre breaststroke in  which he would make put together a masterpiece of a swim .Already the fastest Bahamian 11-12 breaststroker of all time with 32.54 he now had his sights on the 2005 CCCAN record of Panamanian Arturo Medina of 32.42 .That time tied Bermudan Sam Williamson 11-12 national mark of 32.42 as the second fastest of all time in the CCCAN region. The unofficial record was held by  Aruba Jordy Groters at 32.41. Things looked promising for young Forbes when he clocked the fastest time of the preliminaries of 32.99. In the championship Final Forbes  took off from the sounding of the starter’s gun and was more than a body length of the field by the 25 metre mark.With the question of the Gold answered what needed to be determined was what the record would be lowered to . Forbes continued to blaze towards the wall and slapped the pads in a time of 32.15 , a new PB, Bahamian , CCCAN Championship  record and he can officially hold the moniker of the fastest the region had ever seen in the event. Winning the Silver was Trinidad and Tobago Nikoli Blackman in 34.74 and the Bronze to Edu Trejos in 34.75. It was this event that he created history for the CARIFTA region by winning the first ever Gold medal at the  inaugural UANA Championships so it is fitting that he would take the regional Triple Crown UANA , CARIFTA and CCCAN titles in the fastest swim of all time.

Nigel Forbes of The Bahamas First Gold Medallist for The Bahamas and the CARIFTA region 11-12 breaststroke Gold at the 2018 UANA cup

UANA	34.20
CARIFTA	34.05
CCCAN	32.15

The 100 metre breaststroke would see Nigel putting another show of scintillating speed.As with the 50 metre breaststroke he was already the best The Bahamas had ever produced with his 1:12.24 clocking from the REV nationals and was within a hair’s breadth of the CCCAN record time of 1:12.18 set by  Olympian Carlos  Claverie of Venezuela  (Rio 2016) .

Carlos Claverie waving to the crowd after being presented with Bronze medal at the 2014 Youth Olympics Photo courtesy of panamericanworld

Claverie  won Bronze at the 2014 Youth Olympics in Nanjing China in the 100 metre breaststroke in a time of 1:01.56.

After easing into the final with a time of 1:14.78  he decided to turn on the thrills in the final. When the race started Nigel again separated himself by some distance by the halfway mark turning in 33.13, a split that would have would the Silver in the 50 metre race. He kept applying the pressure and touched in a new PB,Bahamian record and CCCAN Championship record of 1:11.16.  Forbes is now the fastest ever swimmer the CARIFTA region has produced in the event.He just missed the unofficial CCCAN 2014 record of 1:10.94 held by Puerto Rico’s Daniel Chevere. The win also marked another Triple Crown performance ( UANA, CARIFTA and CCCAN). Silver went to Panamanian Trejos in 1:13.24 and Blackman won Bronze in 1:16.24.

Event	Time	Split
UANA	1:15.07	35.40
CARIFTA	1:15.81	35.50
CCCAN	1:11.16	33.13

Boys 11-12 200 metre breaststroke medallists from left to right Trejos, Forbes and Bonati Photo courtesy of Harold Wilson

The 200 metre breaststroke which was Forbes first individual race saw a colossal battle between himself and Trejos. The Panamian started the race with a split of 35.67 followed by Nigel with a 36.50 . They were the only swimmers under 37 seconds for the first 50 metres and well ahead of the rest of the field. Nigel kept closing the gap on Edu until he was ahead by .01 ahead of him coming off the final wall.

Forbes pushing for Gold in the 200 metre breaststroke Photo courtesy of CCCAN

 

He then stepped on the gas to take the win in a new PB and Bahamas record 2:36.00.  Forbes just missed another Claverie standard of 2:35.89 but is now the fastest ever 11-12 200 metre breaststroke swimmer from the CARIFTA region. Edu was close behind winning Silver in 2:36.32. Bronze went to Stefan Bonati of the Cayman Islands in 2:49.08.

Boys 11-12 100 metre butterfly podium from left to right Wilson,Forbes and Gossmann Photo courtesy of CCCAN

There would be more Gold for Forbes in Aruba in the sprint butterfly events. In the 100 metre butterfly he won the Gold based on a strong back half. This, as he was behind at the 50 metre mark as the early leaders Christopher Gossmann of Guatemala 29.23 and Trinidad and Tobago standout Zarek Wilson 29.44. Nigel’s split was 30.05. He however provided the fastest last 50 metres to take the Gold in 1:01.95 a new PB and Bahamian record taking almost a second off the 2014 Evante Gibson standard of 1:02.83 .that completed the regional Golden Double as he won the CARIFTA Gold in 1:04.05 earlier this year in Kingston. Silver went to Wilson in a new PB of 1:02.16 and the Bronze to Gossmann in 1:02.23.The same trio finished in the exact same order earlier at the UANA cup with times of 1:03.34,1:03.48 and 1:04.19 respectively

CARIFTA	1:04.09	30.47
CCCAN	1:01.95	30.05

Boys 11-12 50 metre butterfly medal podium from left to right Sealy, Forbes and Gossmann Photo courtesy of CCCAN

In the 50 metre butterfly he posted the only sub 28 seconds time in the final to win 27.73. Omari Sealy of Barbados took the Silver in 28.17 and Gossman 28.25. He holds the national record at 27.67.

Boys 11-12 100 metre freestyle medal podium from left to right Forbes,Blackman and Johnson Photo courtesy of Harold Wilson

In the 100 metre freestyle he dipped under the 58 seconds barrier for the first time to win Silver in a PB and national record time 57.79.Gold went to Blackman in 57.61 and the Bronze to his teammate Marvin Johnson in 58.75. The old 11-12 record of 57.99 belonged to Lamar Taylor .

 

11-12 mixed 200 metre freestyle relay medallists from left to right The Bahamas, Trinidad and Tobago and the Cayman Islands Phoot courtesy of Harold Wilson

There would be another Silver for Forbes and Team Bahamas in the 200 metre mixed freestyle relay.The team of Johnson (27.98),Keianna Moss (28.72) ,Devin Cuffy-Bethel 28.98 and Forbes (25.76) stopped the clock in 1:50.64 just behind Team Trinidad and Tobago 1:50.29 .The Bronze went to the Cayman Islands in 1:52.64. Nigel placed 9th in the 400 metre freestyle.

When draftingthecaribbean contacted the young swimmer he gave his thoughts on his breaststroke Gold medals . He said that he felt great about all the breaststroke races his favourite was the 100 metre race. When questioned about the 200 metre event if he knew about the record and if he could have gone faster he said he did not think he could have gone any faster because he had great competition from his Panamanian competitor (Edu Trejos) and he gave it his all. Forbes now owns 7 of the 16 individual Bahamian national records for the 11-12 age group

Event	Record
100 metre freestyle	57.79
50 metre breaststroke	32.15
100 metre breaststroke	1:11.16
200 metre breaststroke	2:36.00
50 metre butterfly	27.67
100 metre butterfly	1:01.95
400 metre IM	5:18.05

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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EMILY MacDONALD COMPLETES REGIONAL GOLDEN RECORD DOUBLE (CARIFTA AND CCCAN TITLES), BECOMES FASTEST 13-14 GIRL OF ALL TIME, HELPS 13-14 MEDLEY RELAY TO GOLD ,NATIONAL RECORDS FALL MORGAN COGLE AND THE 11-12 GIRLS MEDLEY RELAY TEAM

The final day of competition at the CCCAN swimming Championships in Aruba  on July 2  saw Team Jamaica adding Two Gold, Three Silver and Three Bronze medals.

13-14 50 metre freestyle medallists from left to right Watson-Brown ,MacDonald and Farro Photo courtesy of Harold Wilson

The highlight of the day was Emily MacDonald who completed the freestyle sprint double .A day after she completed the record regional Golden Double (CARIFTA and CCCAN titles) in the 100 metre freestyle she did the same in the 50 metre freestyle. She took the race in a time of 26.48 a new PB, CCCAN and CARIFTA all time best.It was a mere .03 of a second outside of the automatic Youth Olympic qualifying mark of 26.45.

This makes her unbeaten for the 13-14 age group at CCCAN as she took the title in Trinidad and Tobago as well last year in 27.20. In April of this year in her hometown of Kingston she won the splash and dash in  a  time of  26.76 lowering the record of 26.81 held by Bermudan Madelyn Moore. In Aruba she would take down another Moore standard of 26.65 , the unofficial all time regional record. Emily has been Golden in all but one meet at the regional level since 2016.

GOLDEN RUN

Date	Meet	Medal	Time
March 2016	CARIFTA	Gold	28.15
July 2016	CISC	Gold	27.64
April 2017	CARIFTA	4th	27.60
July 2017	CCCAN	Gold	27.20
April 2018	CARIFTA	Gold	26.76 Record26.81
July 2018	CCCAN	Gold	26.48 record 26.65

Chinyere Pigot Photo courtesy of thrillson.blogspot.com

MacDonald had the second fastest time of the competition. That accolade went to none other  than Madelyn Moore who lowered the 15-17 meet of  26.13 by Suriname’s Olympian Chinyere Pigot (Beijing 2008 and London 2012) when she stopped the clock in 25.97.

Silver went to Bermuda’s Logan Watson -Brown in 27.24  and the Bronze to Aruba Chloe Farro 27.67.

When draftingthecaribbean spoke to Emily she gave her thoughts on her performances

“I’m very happy about winning events in the meet for my age group and breaking Championship record for both events .It gives me the assurance that I have the potential to be a great sprinter”.

13-14 400 metre medley relay medallists from left to right Colombia,Jamaica and Aruba Photo courtesy of Harold Wilson

There would almost  be another regional record Golden Double in the 400 metre medley relay as the team of Simone Vale, Sabrina Lyn, MacDonald and Amore Hunter just missed the CCCAN record of 4:34.23 held by the 2005 Mexico team and their own national age group record of 4:33.81 when they won Gold in 4:34.48.Silver went to Colombia in 4:38.89 and Bronze to Aruba in 4:52.40.

13-14 CCCAN Gold medallists from left to right Hunter,MacDonald, Lyn and Vale Photo courtesy of Harold Wilson

 

Names	CARIFTA Record	Names	CCCAN 2005	Names	CCCAN 2018
backstroke Vale	1:09.46	backstroke Gonzalez	1:08.21	backstroke Vale	1:10.15
breastroke Lyn	1:21.13	breastroke Delgado	1:19.31	breastroke Lyn	1:18.26
butterfly Zaneta Alvaranga	1:04.54	butterfly Medrano	1:06.18	butterfly MacDonald	1:04.46
freestyle MacDonald	58.68	freestyle Barjas	1:00.53	freestyle Hunter	1:01.61
	4:33.81		4:34.28		4:34.48

Girls 11-12 200 metre backstroke from left to right Crooks, Jimenez Garrido and Cogle Photo courtesy of Harold Wilson

There would be another national record for Morgan Cogle in the 11-12 200 metre backstroke.She lowered the 2007 Kendese Nangle record of 2:36.00 set at CCCAN 2007 in El Salvador in the morning heats with a time of 2:35.21. She would go on to win Bronze in the final in 2:35.29. Jillian Crooks of the Cayman Islands took the Silver in 2:33.98 with Gold going to  Elizabeth Jimenez Garrido of the Dominican Republic in 2:33.23.

In the 400 medley relay Cogle backstroke ,Brooke Hopkins breaststroke ,Ireland Hunter butterfly and Safiya Officer won the Silver in a new national age group record of 4:56.06. That bettered the old 2007 record of 4:58.67 set in by the 2007 CARIFTA team Brittany Kenney, Kendese Nangle, Raynae Hall and Alexia Royal-Eatmon.

COMPARISON OF TIMES

Names	CCCAN 2018	Names	CARIFTA 2007
backstroke Cogle	1:12.37	backstroke Kenney	1:16.37
breaststroke Hopkins	1:24.50	breaststroke Nangle	1:23.96
butterfly Hunter	1:15.97	butterfly Hall	1:12.08
freestyle Officer	1:03.22	freestyle Royal-Eatmon	1:06.26
	4:56.06		4:58.67

Girls 11-12 400 metre medley relay medallists from left to right Jamaica ,Trinidad and Tobago and Barbados Photo courtesy of Harold Wilson

Gold went to Trinidad and Tobago in 4:51.10 and the Bronze to Barbados in 5:06.93.

Girls 15-17 50 metre freestyle medallists from left to right Banks,Moore and Russell Photo courtesy of Harold Wilson

In the 15-17 Girls 50 metre freestyle it was Gabrianna Banks getting the medal for Team Jamaica . She stopped the clock in a new PB of 26.69 for the Silver. The performance marks consecutive Silver medals for Banks who won Silver in her last year of 13-14 in the twin island republic last year in 27.28. The Bronze went to Victoria Russell of The Bahamas in a new PB of 26.93. This is the first medal for Jamaica in 2017 since Breanna Roman won Bronze in 27.59 at CCCAN 2011 in Puerto Rico.

Boys 13-14 50 metre freestyle medallists from left to right Williams, Taylor and Thomas Photo courtesy of Harold Wilson

There would be a Bronze for Nathaniel Thomas in the 13-14 age group in the 50 metre freestyle as his effort was timed in a PB of 25.33. This is a step up from his performance at CARIFTA where he placed ninth in 26.19. Silver went to Malik Nelson of Trinidad and Tobago in 24.50. Gold went to the fastest 13-14 swimmer of the season Lamar Taylor of The Bahamas who won in a new CCCAN record of 23.94 to add to his CARIFTA title which he won in 24.27 and  as well as National title in 23.79.

Saifiya Officer Bronze medallist in the Girls 11-12 50 metre freestyle Photo courtesy of Harold Wilson

There would be Bronze for Safiya Officer in the girls 11-12 race  she touched in 27.71.Silver went to St Lucia’s Naima Hazell in 27.61 .

Cerian Gibbes competing in the 100 metre breaststroke at the 1996 Olympics Photo courtesy of gettyimages

The Gold went to the Cayman Islands Jillian Crooks who lowered the 1995 meet standard of 27.55 set  by Trinidad and Tobago’s Olympian Cerian Gibbes who went to the Atlanta 1996 Games as a 13 year old.

Boys 11-12 400 metre medley relay medallists from left to right Jamaica,Trinidad and Tobago and Aruba Photo courtesy of Harold Wilson

The 11-12 boys 400 metre medley relay team won Silver . The team of Daniel Mair (backstroke) 1:16.61,brother Joshua (breaststroke)1:20.15 ,Jaedon Lynch( butterfly) ( 1:10.15) and Adrian Balfour (freestyle) 1:01.55 touched in 4:48.55 to finish behind the Trinidad and Tobago team that won in 4:41.05.the Bronze was won by Aruba in 4:53.76.

Boys 15-17 400 metre medley relay medallists from left to right Trinidad and Tobago,The Bahamas and Jamaica Photo courtesy of Harold Wilson

The 15-17 boys won the Bronze in their medley relay. The team of Nicholas Vale (backstroke) 1:01.47 ,Sean-Douglas Gooden (breaststroke) 1:09.48 ,Jesse Marsh (butterfly) 56.91 and Cameron Brown (freestyle) 55.86 touched in 4:03.72. Gold was won by The Bahamas in 3:59.57 and the Silver to Trinidad and Tobago in 4:01.63.

 

 

 

 

EMILY MacDONALD LOWERS OLYMPIAN CLAUDIA POLL’S 100 FREESTYLE MEET STANDARD TO RECORD REGIONAL GOLDEN DOUBLE (CARIFTA AND CCCAN TITLES)

Day Four of the CCCAN Swimming championships saw Team Jamaica adding Four more medals to their tally One Gold , One Silver and Two Silver to have Eighteen medals Six Gold ,Four Silver and Eight Bronze medals.

Getting the Gold for the land of wood and water was Emily MacDonald in the girls 13-14 100 metre freestyle. She bounced back from illness on Day Three to win the freestyle title.

13-14 100 metre freestyle medal podium from left to right Watson-Brown Bermuda, MacDonald and Libreros Bolivar Colombia Photo courtesy of Harold Wilson

In the Championship final she recorded the only sub 28 seconds split at the halfway mark and then pulled away from the field to record a new personal best and CCCAN meet record of 57.95. It was also the fastest 100 metre freestyle time recorded by a girl at the Championship.

Claudia Poll Photo courtesy of panamericanworld

That lowered the the more than three decades old standard of 58.34 byCosta Rican Olympic Gold medallist Claudia Poll (1996,2000 and 2004). MacDonald also is closing in on the national age group record of 57.54 held by Olympian Janelle Atkinson (2000,2004). It was Poll who held off Atkinson to win the Bronze in the 400 metre freestyle at the 2000 Sydney Games . That fourth place position at the Olympics is the joint highest placing at the Games along with Alia Atkinson’s fourth place at the 2012 London Games.

 

Winning the Silver was Bermuda’s Logan Watson-Brown in 58.82 and the Bronze to Colombia’s  Manuela Libreros Bolivar 1:01.38.

13-14 100 metre freestyle medallists at CARIFTA 2018 in Kingston from left to right Watson-Brown Bermuda Silver ,MacDonald Gold, Alvaranga Bronze Photo courtesy of Mike C Lyn

 

It also  marked the regional Golden Double as she captured the same title at the CARIFTA Games in her hometown of Kingston in April . It marked the second time she is completing the double after doing so in the 11-12 age group in 2016

Regional record for the 100 metre freestyle

Date	Meet	Medal	Time
March 2016	CARIFTA	Gold	1:02.02 split 29.40
July 2016	CISC	Gold	1:00.26 split 29.18
April 2017	CARIFTA	Silver	59.28 split 28.33
July 2017	CCCAN	Gold	58.83 split 27.89
April 2018	CARIFTA	Gold	57.99 split 28.17
July 2018	CCCAN	Gold	57.95 split 27.79

Emily spoke to draftingthecaribbean about her performance after the race

“Going the 100 I was a bit nervous at first. The meet has  not been great so far .In my 200 metre freestyle I got a cramp in my leg and ended up doing a bad time as I added 5 seconds to my personal best and I did not swim the Championship final of the 50 metre butterfly because of that injury and the 100 metre butterfly was not a good race overall.so going into this race I was very nervous as I did not know how I was going to perform because I had not done well so far but I was just going to try my best. That was my mindset heading into the final.I told myself I prepared for this meet and I have trained so hard for this and it does not make sense not swim my heart out. Going into the heats  said I am going to just try and hopefully come in the top 8 fand hopefully seed first for the final. That is what I did and ended up doing a 58.70 .Going into the final I was going up again Logan Watson-Brown from Bermuda who I know is a great swimmer and I was even more nervous.I knew I wanted to get a Gold medal but was still not sure because of how I was performing. Before I stepped on the blocks I knew I had done all that I can to get this far and I know that I have done all I could possibly do to achieve a best time in this race so I was going to do what my coach told me to do which was best time.As I swam the race I remembered doing the splits in training  and swimming the first 50 in a particular time and pushing hard on the last 25 metres into the wall which I did and recorded a personal best which I am very happy about and I got the Gold medal that I wanted”.

15-17 50 metre breaststroke medal podium from left to right Brown,Cheong and Russell Photo courtesy of CCCAN

In the Boys 15-17 50 metre breaststroke Cameron Brown ended a decade old medal drought for Team Jamaica when he secured the Silver in a new personal best of 30.23. He tied Brandon Cheong for the medal while the Gold was won by The Bahamas Tyler Russell in 30.16. The last time Jamaica got a medal in the 15-17 age group in this event was in 2007 in El Salvador when age group star Brad Hamilton won Silver in 30.59.

Cameron gave his thoughts to draftingthecaribbean about the swim

“I knew it was going to be straight line line heading to the wall.I pushed to the very last second.I was suprised to see a new PB of 30.23 when I looked at the scoreboard”.

11-12 100 metre freestyle medallists from left to right Vickles Silver medallist,Crooks Gold medallist and Cogle Bronze medallist Photo courtesy of Harold Wilson

11-12 dynamo Morgan Cogle secured  more precious metal at the Championship .She lowered her 100 metre freestyle from 1:03.11 to 1:02.59 to secure Bronze.The title went to Jillian Crooks of the Cayman Islands in a time of 1:01.72 and the Silver to Gabrielle Vickles of Trinidad and Tobago in 1:02.33.

11-12 200 IM medallists from left to right Crooks, Anthony and Cogle Photo courtesy of CCCAN

In the 200 metre individual medley she ended a more than decade old drought when she won Bronze in 2:37.44.That medal winning swim puts her within sight of the age group record of 2:36.26 set by Annabella Lyn in 2012. Gold was won by the another 11-12 standout Zoe Anthony of Trinidad and Tobago in 2:32.91 and Silver to Crooks in 2:36.70.

 

Bronze was won by the 15-17 800 metre freestyle relay team of Annabella Lyn ,Gabrianna Banks, Bryanna Renuart and Naomi Eaton who stopped the clock in 9:07.22. Gold went to Aruba in 8:48.55 and the Silver to Honduras in 8:59.65.

The personal best tally moved from 28 to 47 at the end of Day Four

Name	Event	Personal Best	Previous Best
Morgan Cogle	Girls 11-12 200 IM	2:39.42	2:41.26
Morgan Cogle	Girls 11-12 200 IM	2:37.44	2:39.42
Joshua Mair	Boys 11-12 200 IM	2:37.13	2:41.26
Jaedon Lynch	Boys 11-12 200 IM	2:39.06	2:40.93
Sabrina Lyn	Girls 13-14 200 IM	2:37.06	2:44.98
Sabrina Lyn	Girls 13-14 200 IM	2:35.25	2:37.06
Nathaniel Thomas	Boys 13-14 200 IM	2:29.56	2:29.83
Joshua Mair	Boys 11-12 50 metre breaststroke	36.52	37.23
Joshua Mair	Boys 11-12 50 metre breaststroke	36.14	36.52
Jaedon Lynch	Boys 11-12 50 metre breaststroke	36.23	36.45
Sean-Douglas Gooden	Boys 15-17 50 metre breaststroke	31.35	31.43
Cameron Brown	Boys 15-17 50 metre breaststroke	30.23	30.64
Morgan Cogle	Girls 11-12 100 metre freestyle	1:03.10	1:03.11
Morgan Cogle	Girls 11-12 100 metre freestyle	1:02.59	1:03.10
Adrian Balfour	Boys 11-12 100 metre freestyle	1:02.42	1:03.28
Emily MacDonald	Girls 13-14 100 metre freestyle	57.95	57.99
Nathaniel Thomas	Boys 13-14 100 metre freestyle	56.12	56.95
Daniel Mair	Boys 11-12 100 metre freestyle	1:02.60	1:06.15
Jaedon Lynch	Boys 11-12 200 metre butterfly	2:46.50	2:51.11
Jordane Payne	Boys 15-17 200 metre butterfly	2:17.58	2:18.43

 

GIRLS GOLD RUSH SUNDAY MORGAN COGLE WINS 11-12 200 FREE AND ANCHORS RELAY IN NATIONAL RECORD TIME,SABRINA LYN TAKES BUTTERFLY SPRINT DOUBLE AND BRYANNA RENUART TAKES REGIONAL GOLDEN DOUBLE WITH 400 IM WIN

It was the young ladies of Team Jamaica that provided the Gold medals on Day 3 of the 2018 CCCAN Swimming championships on  Sunday July 1. Team Jamaica won Four Gold medals along with One Silver and Two Bronze medals to have a Day Three total of 14 medals Five Gold Three Silver and Six Bronze medals.

MAGNIFICENT MORGAN

Girls 11-12 200 metre freestyle medallists Anthony Silver medallist Trinidad and Tobago, Cogle Gold medallist and Crooks Cayman Islands Bronze medallist Photo courtesy of CCCAN

Leading the way was 11-12 standout Morgan Cogle who started the proceedings in the 200 metre freestyle. She eased in to the finals taking some four seconds off her personal best to be seeded third with a PB of 2:19.47. In the Championship final it was close  until the first 50 metres then Morgan and Trinidad and Tobago age group star Zoe Anthony separated themselves from the field .At the 100 it was Zoe with a slight edge 1:04.58 to Cogle’s 1:04.76. She increased that lead at the 150 metre mark 1:39.76 to 1:40.27. Then came an awesome battle on the last 50 metre Morgan came roaring back with a final 50 of   33.89 to Anthony’s 35.01 to win in a new PB and age group record of 2:14.16 to 2:14.77 for Anthony which was also  a PB. The Bronze went to the Cayman Islands standout Jillian Crooks in 2:16.95. Both Anthony and Crooks are the reigning CARIFTA Silver and Bronze medallists with times of 2:17.64 and 2:19.09 recorded in Kingston earlier this year.

Cogle looking at her time after the heats of the 200 metre freestyle Photo courtesy of CCCAN

Morgan lowered the age group mark of 2:15.29 set by teammate Emily MacDonald at the 2016 Caribbean Islands Swimming Championships (CISC) in the Bahamas and become the first Gold medallist for Jamaica in the event  in over a decade

	Emily 2016	Morgan 2018
First 50	30.48	30.46
Second 50	34.01	34.30
Third 50	35.66	35.51
Fourth 50	35.14	33.89
	2:15.29	2:14.16

Girls 400 metre freestyle relay medallists from left to right Silver medallists Trinidad and Tobago ,gold medallists Jamaica, Bronze medallists Barbados Photo courtesy of Harold Wilson

 

Her record breaking exploits would continue in the 400 metre freestyle relay as she anchored the team of  Safiya Officer ,Isabella Sierra ,Ireland Hunter  to the Gold in a total time of 4:13.74. The Silver went to Trinidad and Tobago in 4:17.32 and the Bronze to Barbados in 4:25.20.

The old record  of 4:18.42 belonged to the 2012 CISC team of Angara Sinclair,Tiara Myrie,Annabella Lyn and Annastazia Chin that competed in Aruba

Jamaica 2012	Splits	Jamaica 2018	Splits
Angara Sinclair	1:04.08	Safiya Officer	1:03.61
Tiara Myrie	1:07.98	Isabella Sierra	1:05.21
Annabella Lyn	1:03.15	Ireland Hunter	1:03.45
Annastazia Chin	1:03.21	Morgan Cogle	1:01.47
Total Time	4:18.42	Total Time	4:13.77

NO LIMITS FOR LYN

Girls 13-14 50 metre butterfly podium from left to right Watson-Brown Bermuda Silver medallist, Lyn Gold, Reyes Briceno, Bronze medallist Colombia Photo courtesy of CCCAN

Sabrina would complete the butterfly sprint double when she won the 13-14 50 metre butterfly. She came to Aruba with a personal standard of 30.43 . Lyn who is normally know for her back end speed is showing versatility by adding the the sprint fly to her better events. She lowered her personal standard in the morning heats with a time of 30.03 to be the fifth seed heading into the Championship final. The first four finishers clocked 29 s. With teammate Emily MacDonald out the final due to illness Jamaica’s hopes lay solely with Lyn to get a medal. The faith put in her was not misplaced as she destroyed her old personal best and turned in the only sub 29 seconds performance of the race to win in 28.66. Silver went to Bermuda’s Logan Watson-Brown in 29.07 and the Bronze to Colombia’s  Laura Catalina Reyes Briceno 29.42

BREAKOUT FOR BRYANNA

Girls 15-17 400 IM medallists from left to right Alondra Ortíáz Costa Rica Silver medallist, Bryanna Renuart Gold medallist and Bronze medallist Ana Pastrana Honduras Photo courtesy of Harold Wilson

The year 2018 will be one to remember for Bryanna Renuart. When the year started she  never won any individual Gold but turned that around at CARIFTA when she took the hardest route to Gold and captured the 15-17 400 individual medley title.

Bryanna Renuart swimming in the heats of the 400 IM Photo courtesy of CCCAN

A two sport standout in both swimming and cross country track she dropped the latter to focus on swimming. That singular focus has continued to reap big dividends as she won her second career Gold in 5:12.42 holding off the challenges from Alondra Ortíáz of Costa Rica 5:13.30 Silver and  Ana  Pastrana Honduras 5:14.38 Bronze.

Draftingthecaribbean spoke to Renuart and asked her about her accomplishments

Bryanna Renuart powering her way to 400 IM Gold Photo courtesy of CCCAN

“I was really excited to get another gold in the 400 IM. I wasn’t tapered for this meet as I have a few more this summer, so I was very proud to have found the strength to win it, especially because it is my longest and hardest event. Even though it wasn’t a best time for me, my consistency in that race gives me a lot of confidence for my future competitions with the Jamaican team.I don’t see myself as a natural distance swimmer because I have done better in sprints in the past. Knowing that I am swimming so well in that event right now makes me confident that my training is working. I’m excited to have more event flexibility in the future”.

 

Boys 15-17 50 metre butterfly medal podium from left to right Payne Curaçao Silver medallist, Yorke Gold medallist ,Vale Bronze medallist Photo courtesy of CCCAN

Nicholas Vale would rattle the 15-17 age group record in the 50 metre butterfly when he won the Bronze in a personal best of 25.59. The national record stands at 25.55 to Olympian Timothy Wynter (Rio 2016) set the 2012 CISC . Gold went Trinidad and Tobago’s Kael Yorke who won in 25.17 and the Silver to Curaçao’s Mauricio Payne in 25.50.

Girls 15-17 400 metre freestyle relay podium from left to right Jamaica Silver medallists,Aruba Gold medallists and Honduras Bronze medallists Photo courtesy of Harold Wilson

Silver was won by the girls 15-17 400 metre freestyle relay team of Annabella Lyn (1:01.28),Bryanna Renuart (1:01.09),Naomi Eaton (1:02.09) and Gabrianna Banks (1:00.95)  in time of of 4:05.37. Gold was won by Aruba in 3:57.72 and the Bronze by Honduras in 4:08.21.

Boys 11-12 400 metre freestyle medallists from left to right Aruba Silver medallists,Trinidad and Tobago Gold medallists and Jamaica Bronze medallists Photo courtesy of Harold Wilson

The 11-12 boys 400 metre freestyle relay won the Bronze in a time of 4:11.59.The team of Daniel Mair (1:02.98),Joshua Mair (1:02,81),Jaedon Lynch 1:03.61 and Adrian Balfour (1:02.19) finished behind Trinidad and Tobago 4:01.48 and Aruba 4:11.56.

The Personal best count went to 27 at the end of of Day Three

Day	Name	Event		Personal Best	Previous Best
Three	Safiya Officer	Girls 11-12 200 metre freestyle		2:27.39	2:28.88
Three	Morgan Cogle	Girls 11-12 200 metre freestyle		2:19.47	2:23.89
Three	Morgan Cogle	Girls 11-12 200 metre freestyle		2:14.16 AGR	2:19.47
Three	Joshua Mair	Boys 11-12 200 metre freestyle		2:20.82	2:22.47
Three	Isabella Sierra	Girls 11-12 50 metre butterfly		31.21	32.32
Three	Aliyah Heaven	Girls 11-12 50 metre butterfly		31.76	32.23
Three	Joshua Mair	Boys 11-12 50 metre butterfly		30.80	33.03
Three	Jaedon Lynch	Boys 11-12 50 metre butterfly		30.82	31.27
Three	Sabrina Lyn	Girls 13-14 50 metre butterfly		28.66	30.43
Three	Nathaniel Thomas	Boys 13-14 50 metre butterfly		26.85	26.91
Three	Nicholas Vale	Boys 15-17 50 metre butterfly		25.59	25.67
Three	Morgan Cogle	Girls 11-12 100 metre backstroke		1:11.72	1:13.55
Three	Safiya Officer	Girls 11-12 100 metre backstroke		1:16.27	1:18.45
Three	Amore Hunter	Girls 13-14 100 metre backstroke		1:15.24	1:16.46
Three	Annabella Lyn	Girls 15-17 100 metre backstroke		1:10.17	1:10.85
				4:13.74	4:18.02

 

 

 

 

DANIELLE TITUS ON THE VERGE OF BACKSTROKE SWEEP IN 15-17 AGE GROUP

15-17 CARIFTA Champion and record holder in the 100 metre backstroke Photo courtesy of Mike C Lyn

After being denied the 50,100 and 200 metre backstroke sweep in her final year of the 13-14 age group in The Bahamas last year Danielle Titus of Barbados looks on course to achieve that here in  Kingston Jamaica in national record breaking fashion .

 

In The Bahamas Titus earned the Silver in an age group and senior national record of 30.82 in the 50 metre event on the first day competition. Jamaica would prove  to offer  no problem at the first hurdle as the national standard was lowered to 30.22 in the heats. She would come close to that time in the final stopping the clock in 30.30 finishing ahead of Bermuda’s Madelyn Moore 30.90  and Jamaica’s Brianna Anderson 31.01.

15-17 100 metre backstroke podium from left to right Stamp,Titus and Johnson Photo courtesy of Mike C Lyn

Stage two of the mission was the 100 metre backstroke. She got through the morning heats easily posting the top time of 1:06.03, just missing the Championship record of 1:05.94 set by Lauren Hew of the Cayman Islands in 2017.

Lauren Hew  Photo courtesy of caymansportsbuzz.com

The final would witness the registering of a new PB, age group, senior national record and Championship record of 1:04.79.That performance bettered her national record of 1:05.61 and the Youth Olympics B time of 1:05.65. Silver went to Virginia Stamp of The Bahamas in 1:07.52 and Jamaica’s Shaun Johnson who recorded a new personal best time of 1:08.45.

 

The final leg of the sweep voyage will be the 200 metre backstroke and Titus will expect strong challenges from the Cayman Islands duo of Ella Plunkett and Sam Bailey as well as Stamp from The Bahamas.

CARTER WINS RELAY GOLD IN THE 200 YARD MEDLEY RELAY , RECORDS THIRD FASTEST BUTTERFLY SPLIT EVER, MAKES ANOTHER 200 YARD FREESTYLE CHAMPIONSHIP FINAL

On Friday March 23,2018 Trinidad and Tobago’s Olympian Dylan Carter (Rio 2016) and his University of Southern California team won the school’s first ever 200 yard medley relay title in school record time.On the way to that maiden relay title Carter established himself as the second fastest performer on the butterfly leg in that event.

The then record stood at 1:23.90 from the preliminaries of the 2015 NCAA Division I championships. The personnel at that time  included Carter and fellow Olympian Canadian Santo Condorelli (Rio 2016)

backstroke	Luca Spinazzola	20.99
breaststroke	Morten Klarksov	24.00
butterfly	Dylan Carter	20.03
freestyle	Santo Condorelli	18.88

In the final that year the Trojans finished sixth in 1:24.08 and Dylan narrowly missed breaching the 20 seconds barrier again on the butterfly leg with 20.04 effort.

Fast forward to 2018 and that landmark would be breached as the 2018 team crushed the school standard with a total time of 1:22.76 to be the number one seed heading into the Championship final. The returning members of the record team would be Carter and Condorelli

backstroke	Ralf Tribuntsov	20.93
breaststroke	Carsten Vissering	23.38
butterfly	Dylan Carter	19.97
freestyle	Santo Condorelli	18.48

In the final there would be a change in the lineup with Robert Glinta doing lead off backstroke duties. The race started with Glinta touching in 21.15 to see the Trojans in sixth place. Breaststroker Vissering provided a game changing leg of 22.58, the fastest ever to put the Trojans ahead. Carter responded with the third fastest butterfly leg of all time 19.60 and fastest on the night to  give Condorelli the lead he needed to seal the win in a new school and pool record of 1:21.82. That was just enough to hold off California in 1:21.88 and Florida with a rampaging Caleb Dressel of Florida who recorded a mind boggling 17.37 split for a total time of 1:22.33.

backstroke	Robert Glinta	21.15
breaststroke	Carsten Vissering	22.58
butterfly	Dylan Carter	19.60
freestyle	Santo Condorelli	18.49

Dylan Carter Photo courtesy of usctrojans.com

That butterfly split has the Dylan as the second fastest performer behind Singaporean Olympic Gold medallist Joseph Schooling who owns the top 2 times from the 2016 and 2017 Championships

Joseph Schooling Photo courtesy of businessinsider.com

Date	Swimmer	split
March 2016	Joseph Schooling	19.36
March 2017	Joseph Schooling	19.45
March 2018	Dylan Carter	19.60

That relay win also moves Carter

2014	Dylan Carter	800 yard freestyle relay	6:13.09
2015	Dylan Carter	400yard  freestyle relay	2:47.06
2015	Dylan Carter	800 yard freestyle relay	6:11.64
2018	Dylan Carter	200 yard medley relay	1:21.82

from a tie with the Cayman Islands’ Olympian Shaune Fraser (Beijing 2008, London 2012) for the most NCAA crowns .

Shaune Fraser Photo courtesy of shaunefraser.com

Date	Swimmer	event	Time
2009	Shaune Fraser	200 yard freestyle	1:31.70
2009	Shaune Fraser	200 yard butterfly	1:40.75
2010	Shaune Fraser	200 yard butterfly	1:41.45

Anthony Nesty Photo courtesy of olympic.org

He is now equal with Suriname’s 1988 Olympic Gold medallist in the 100 metre butterfly Anthony Nesty( LA 1984, Seoul 1988, Barcelona 1992)  with four titles. Both  swimmers represented Florida.

1990	Anthony Nesty	100 yard butterfly	46.62
1991	Anthony Nesty	100 yard butterfly	47.00
1992	Anthony Nesty	100 yard butterfly	46.78
1990	Anthony Nesty	200 yard butterfly	1:43.46

Goerge Bovell III Photo courtesy of sportsmax.tv

The record is held by another legendary regional swimmer, his countryman 2004 Olympic Bronze medallist in the 200 IM George Bovell III (Sydney 2000,Athens 2004,Beijing 2008, London 2012 and Rio 2016) ,who competed for Auburn.

2003	George Bovell III	200 yard IM	1:42.66
2004	George Bovell III	200 scm freestyle relay	1:23.75
2004	George Bovell III	400 scm freestyle relay	3:08.85
2004	George Bovell III	200 scm IM (former World record)	1:53.93
2006	George Bovell III	200  yard freestyle relay	1:16.15

The 200 yard freestyle saw the outgoing senior making yet another Championship final. He made his way to the medal  race with a season best time of 1:32.30 (split time 44.56). In that final he would finish seventh in a time of 132.68 (split time 44.29) . He still remains however the third fastest performer of all time with a time of 1:30.95(split time 43.79 ) leading off the Trojans 800 yard freestyle relay team last year.

 

 

 

JUSTIN PLASCHKA CONTINUES TO RAISE THE BAR FOR JAMAICAN SPRINTING BY LOWERING STANDARDS AT 2018 ACC CHAMPIONSHIPS

The 2018 Atlantic Coast Championships came to a close on Feb 24 at the Greensboro Aquatics Centre, Greensboro North Carolina which saw Notre Dame’s star sprinter Justin Plaschka blazing to new all-time Jamaican standards in his final conference meet.

Plaschka, who was already Jamaica’s fastest swimmer of all time in the 25 yard pool, added a bit more shine to his crown. On the first day of competition Wed he gave a glimpse of his speed when he rocketed to the fastest butterfly in the 200 medley relay of 20.21.That propelled the Fighting Irish team to a news season best of 1:25.37 and an NCAA B time standard.

Justin Plaschka with members of the Notre Dame graduating class Photo courtesy of und.com

In the 50 yard freestyle the senior bettered his season best time of 19.60 and made his third consecutive Championship final in the event. In the final he would blaze to new school record and Jamaica best time of 19.30. It also bettered the time standard of 19.43 to be invited to the NCAA Division I final.

Plaschka’s evolution of speed

Year	Time	split
2018	19.30	9.22
2017	19.38	9.32
2016	19.72	9.44
2015	20.12	9.65

His performance ranks as the second fastest collegiate performance of all time by a CARIFTA region swimmer

He would gain another automatic invitation to the Championships when the Notre Dame team placed fourth in the 200 yard freestyle relay in a season best of 1:17.61. That just under cut the A standard of 1:17.62.

University of Notre Dame tribute to Justin Plaschka for setting the Jamaican at the 2016 World Short Course Swim Championships Photo courtesy of und.com

In the 100 yard butterfly Justin was just off his season best of 46.84 when he stopped the clock in 46.92. It earned him a second swim in the C final. Knowing he was in a different class than the field he was to race  he demonstrated that from the firing of the starter’s gun.He blitzed the field with an opening leg of 20.97, an advantage of more than a half a second. With the field defeated it would be a question of what time he would post. He did not disappoint as he registered his first sub 46 seconds swim touching in 45.41.A swim that would have earned the Bronze medal. It blew away his school record and Jamaica best of 46.05 and also went under the  2017 NCAA invitation time of 46.10.

Shaune Fraser Photo courtesy of shaunefraser.com

It also pushes him past 45.82 Cayman Olympian Shaune Fraser (Beijing 2008, London 2012) as the second fastest CARIFTA collegiate swimmer of all time.

He would help the 400 yard medley team to fourth and a season best and NCAA B time of 3:08.32 with a butterfly split of 45.34 .

In the 100 yard freestyle he would lower his season best twice .In the morning he recorded 43.48. Competing in the C final he  easily topped the competition with a swim of 43.02. He had taken the wind out of the sails of the competition with a split of 20.01.In his final event the Notre Dame team recorded a season best and A qualifying time of 2:51.62.

When draftingthecaribbean caught up with Plaschka he gave his thoughts about his swims

“I was relatively happy with my swims in the 50 freestyle and 100 butterfly. I was glad I was able to take off in both and hit times that would send me to NCAA’s. Only thing I was disappointed in and know that I have to work on in the future is racing better in the mornings. It’s something I know I will be working on the next few weeks in preparation for NCAA’s”.

Notre Dame finished fourth overall with 941 points.North Carolina State topped the

topped the competition with 1457 points.

competition with 1457.