Two-time national Olympic swimmer, Sharntelle McLean and coach of the T&T team for the just-concluded third Pan Am Age-Group Swimming which was hosted by the Aquatics Sports Association of T&T (ASATT) at the National Aquatic Centre in Balmain, Couva and concluded on Sunday says she is very proud of her swimmers.
Speaking after the four-day meet which comprised Time Finals only and feature more than 300 Under-18 competitors McLean, who competed at both the 2004 and 2008 Olympic Games said she was very proud of the entire T&T contingent, mainly by the way they all worked together to attain their goal.
Known previously as the American Swimming Union (UANA) Cup, the meet saw participants from Honduras, Colombia, Puerto Rico, Peru, Suriname, Jamaica, El Salvador, Aruba, Panama, Barbados, Guatemala, Dominican Republic, Grenada, Curacao, Ecuador, Guyana and host T&T.
The trio of North American countries, USA, Canada and Mexico opted not to field any swimmers along with the Bahamas and St Lucia from the English-speaking Caribbean.
Two years (2020), T&T won two gold medals and two silver medals to end in the ninth spot of 20 nations on the medal table and third among English-speaking Caribbean countries, behind Bahamas’ 17 medals (seven gold, four silver and six bronze) and St Lucia’s 14 medals (six gold, seven silver and one bronze).
And on the points table, T&T placed 12th with 71, again third among the English-speaking Caribbean with the Bahamas with 196.5 and St Lucia’s 157, finishing ahead of T&T in sixth and eighth positions respectively.
However, competing on home soil this time around and well supported by parents and teammates, the 33-member T&T contingent finished with a four-day tally of 61 medals (24 gold, 18 silver, and 19 bronze) led by 16-year-old Fatima student, Blackman who recorded three individual records among his 11 medals won (seven gold, three silver, one bronze)
Commenting on the team’s display, McLean, in her second outing as head coach of a national senior swim team said, “I am very proud of the way the team performed.
She added, “From the Manager, the coaches, the chaperones, support personnel (inclusive of massage therapists and parents), but most importantly how the athletes performed at these championships.”
In explaining her main objective for the four-day, McLean said, “The main aim was to get these athletes back into racing and having the best performance they possibly can at this point in time.
“This is my second stint as head coach and it would not have been a success without the support and team synergy.
McLean also thanked ASATT for providing her with the chance to coach the team and showing that belief and confidence in her team.
“The opportunity to do this at home was great for the athletes and the sport and we (the support team) were happy to be a part of this 2022 PanAm Aquatics Age Group national swim team,” ended McLean.
Team manager Jason Wickham said he to was very elated with the team’s performance over the four days and lauded the team chemistry as being a key element.
He said, “We had four days of exciting competition at the Aquatic Center. The team was very hyped and motivated and it was an excellent job done by the athletes.
There was a lot of togetherness and great camaraderie among the team members and that was one of the highlights for the management team as every day it got better and every day the swimmers understood the mission which was about bringing glory to T&T and they executed well.”
“Our coaches over the four days worked very cohesively and we had no issues among the team members or whatever little thing there was it was resolved among the team very quickly, but there was a general great spirit and that I think propel the athletes to perform the way they did, with some of them surpassing their expectations.”
Going forward, Wickham it is hoped that this kind of spirit could continue long after Pan Am and we try to maintain some form of national squad to keep that fire going among Team TTO swimming,” said Wickham.
Individual Age-Group High Point winners
11-12
Girls
1. Elvira Espinosa (Ecuador) - 55
2. Astrid Garcia (Peru) -40
3. Karla Carrizo (Panama) - 38
Boys
1. Felipe Alvarez (Honduras) - 43.5
2. Zachary Burke (Barbados) - 37
3. Alejandro Agard (T&T) - 32.5
13-14
Girls
1. Tiffany Murillo (Colombia) & Christanya Shirley (Jamaica) - 44
3. Yasmin Silva (Peru) - 33
Boys
1. Zachary Anthony (T&T) - 48
2. Giovanni Rivas (T&T) - 45.5
3. Caleb Romero (Puerto Rico) - 43.5
15-17
Girls
1. Alexia Sotomayor(Peru) - 52
2. Danna Martinez (Ecuador) - 39
3. Ella Leon (Peru) & Leanna Wainwright (Jamaica) & Andrea Perea (Puerto Rico) - 38
Boys
1. Nikoli Blackman (T&T) - 60
2. Yamil Ruiz (Puerto Rico) - 40
3. Branynsly Dirksz (Aruba) - 33.5
18 & Over
Women:
1. Jennifer Ramirez (Honduras) - 34
2. Maria-Fe Munoz (Peru) - 32
3. Alexandria Cotter (Puerto Rico) - 29
Men
1. Ricardo Espinosa (Peru) - 48
2. Victor Rosado (Puerto Rico) - 36
3. Yeziel Morales (Puerto Rico) - 34
Final Team scores
1. Peru - 1,149
2. Puerto Rico - 1,073
3. T&T - 818.5
4. Jamaica - 278.5
5. Honduras - 236.5
6. Colombia - 228
7. Ecuador - 175
8. Suriname - 169
9. Aruba - 98
10. Dominican Republic - 83.5
11. Panama - 61
12. Barbados - 58
13. Grenada - 39
14. El Salvador - 29
15. Guatemala - 25
16. Guyana - 10
