ONE debutante has been named by the Saint Lucia Amateur Swimming Association’s technical staff in a seven-member squad to represent Saint Lucia at the upcoming Carifta Swimming Championship in the Nassau, Bahamas from April 15-19.
Lightning Aquatic Swim Club’s Naima Hazell, gold medalist and double-record holder at last year’s Goodwill Championship held here, will make her grand entrance at the Betty Kelly Kenning Aquatic Centre.
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Hazell, a Grade 6 student of Tapion Private School, will compete in the 50-metres backstroke, butterfly, breaststroke and freestyle, as well as the 100-metres freestyle and 100-metres breaststroke.
At the Goodwill Championship last year, Hazell established two records: in the Girls 9-10 Short Course 50-metres breaststroke, she won in a time of 36.60 seconds and in the 100-metres breaststroke she won in a time of 1 minute and 21.93 seconds.
She is the current record holder for the Girls 8 and under Short Course 50 meter Breaststroke which she established in Suriname in 2014 with a time of 43.13 seconds. Naima also won Gold in 50 metre Short Course Freestyle with a time of 30.11 seconds.
Hazell was a member of the Saint Lucia Girls 9-10 relay team which earned one silver and two bronze medals at the Goodwill Games.
Fourteen-year-old Katie Kyle, the 2016 Junior Swimmer of the Year and a member of Sharks Swim Club, will compete in the 50-metres and 100-metres backstroke, butterfly and freestyle races.
Mikaili Charlemagne of Sharks Swim Club will compete in the 50 metres and 100 metres back stroke, fly and freestyle respectively.
Leading Saint Lucia’s charge at the championship in the Boys category is 17-year-old Jyasi Daniel, who is currently studying in the USA, and will compete in the 50-metres and 100-metres butterfly and freestyle events.
Fourteen-year-old Junior Male Swimmer of the Year, JayhanOdlum-Smith of Sea Jays Swim Club will compete in the 50-metres, 100-metres, 200-metres, 400-metres and 1500-metres freestyle distances. In his last swimming outing at the Lightning Aquatic Carnival Relay held at the RHAC, Smith nosed ahead of the pack in the 50-meters in a time of 25:87 seconds; he entered the event with a seeded time of 26.16 seconds.
Making his fourth appearance at the Carifta Games is 14-year-old TerrelMonplaisir, a member of the Sea Jays Swim Club. In 2014-2015, he won Junior Swimmer of the Year titles. He is set to compete in the 50-metres and 100-metres backstroke, 50-metres, 100-metres and 200-metres breaststroke, and 200-metres and 400-metres individual medley.
Jamarr Archibald of Sea Jays Swim Club will make his third consecutive appearance at the games, competing in eight events, namely the 50-metres, 100-metres and 200-metres backstroke and freestyle, and 100-metres butterfly and 200-metres individual medley.
According to SLASA, Saint Lucia will not have any swimmer in the open water competition this year because given the small number of national open water events, swimmers have few opportunities to qualify.
