The local trio of US-based Kimberlee John-Williams, Dylan Carter and Jabari Baptiste all established new meet records as T&T swimmers continued their quest for a hat-trick of titles as the 19th Caribbean Islands Swimming Championship (CISC) continued at the Roly Bisslik Olympic Pool, Savaneta, Aruba on Monday night. Overall, the T&T swimmers under the supervision of head coach Edmund Pouchet bagged 17 medals on the third day of competition, six gold, eight silver and three bronze for a tally of 49 (19 gold, 18 silver, 12 bronze), nine more than its closest challenger, and host Aruba (40 medals), 18 gold, 14 silver and eight bronze. John-Williams who shattered the eight-year-old 15-17 girls 100m backstroke record of (1:06.48 mins) held by Dominican Republic’s Laura Rodriguez with a 1:05.94 clocking on Sunday night added another record, this time in the 50m backstroke. In the final, John-Williams sped home in 30.26 seconds well ahead of the previous top time of 30.61 set by St Lucian, Siona Huxley last, two years in Havana, Cuba.

Second home was Bahamian, Bria Deveaux (31.22) and third, Bermuda’s Ashley Yearwood (31.41). John-Williams also combined with Alexandria Donahue, Rebecca Marshall and Theana Hay for a silver medal in nine minutes, 22.31 seconds in the 15-17 girls 800m freestyle relay. Carter picked up his third individual gold and second new meet record when he raced home in 23.39 seconds in the 15-17 boys 50 freestyle to better the 1996 mark of 23.59 by Cuba’s Marcos Hernandez. Fellow T&T swimmer Joshua Romany got silver in 23.74 while Aruba’s Jordy Groters, secured the bronze in 24.04. Carter added a silver in the 15-17 boys 800m freestyle relay with Romany, Christopher Greene and Emrio Goossen in eight minutes, 05.64 seconds while he took home bronze in the 50m backstroke (27.55 seconds). Baptiste, of the stars of T&T’s title-repeat in Cuba in 2010 picked up his first gold medal of this year’s Championship where she touched the wall first in the 13-14 boys 50m backstroke in 28.06 seconds, the same time as joint-gold medal winner Bahamas’ Dionisio Carey. The time by by the gold medal duo erased the 2010 mark set by T&T’s Joshua Romany of 28.09 in 2010.

Netherlands Antilles’ Jeremy Kostons was third in 29.20 seconds. The other gold medal winners on the third night of competition for T&T were Caryle Blondell,  the 18 & Over boys’ 800m freestyle relay and Theana Hay in the Open Water category. Blondell increased his individual gold medal tally to three after outswimming his rivals in the 18 & Over Boys’ 50m backstroke in 27.08 seconds well ahead of Jamaica’s Ramon Walton (27.46) and Suriname’s Marcelino Richaards (27.65). Blondell then returned to the pool to lead the 18 & Over relay quartet which also comprised Strasser Sankar, Abraham Mc Leod and Levar Goosseen to victory in eight minutes, 11.91 seconds and whipping its lone challenger, Aruba (8:37.77) in the process. He also earned a silver in the 50m freestyle in 23.40 while team-mate Strasser Sankar (23.43) missed bronze by .01 seconds. Hay outlasted her six-swimmers field in the 14-17 girls 5K Open Water event in one hour, 18 minutes, 05.40 seconds.

Puerto Rico’s Ana Isabel Toress was second (1:18:40.20 hrs) and third, Dominican Republic’s Darliana Rodriguez Trinidad (1:21:02.20 hrs). However, the pair of Josiah Morales (1:10:27.00 hrs) and Nicholas Mitchell (1:11:12.00) missed out on medals in the 14-17 boys 5K Open Water event after they ended fourth and sixth respectively. The top three finishers were Dominican Republic’s Emmanuel Hungria (1:06:39.80); Puerto Rican Calvin Ayala (1:06:50.50) and Barbadian, Gabriel Gunby (1:08:01.20). Other silver medallists for T&T on Monday were Sharntelle Mc Lean, both in the 18 & Over girls 50m freestyle (26.94) and 50m backstroke (30.78); Arielle Downes in the 11-12 girls 100m butterfly (1:10.35 mins), and Syriah David, the 13-14 girls 200m butterfly (2:30.95). The duo of Josiah Morales (15-17 boys 200m butterfly—2:15.00) and Ariel Cape (13-14 girls 50m backstroke—32.61) added a bronze medal each. The meet which continued last night concludes today.

Medal TABLE AFTER TWO DAYS
Country Gold Silver Bronze Total
T&T 19 18 12 49
Aruba 18 14 8 40
Suriname 12 7 9 28
Bahamas 10 6 4 20
Bermuda 8 6 10 24
Dom Rep 8 7 5 20
Puerto Rico 6 12 13 31
Jamaica 5 8 9 22
Barbados 5 5 7 17
Netherlands Antilles 0 2 4 9
St Lucia 1 2 2 5
Grenada 0 3 0 3

Source: www.guardian.co.tt