Trinidad and Tobago swimmers aim to feed off Pan Am home crowd

HEAD coach of TT Sharntelle McLean said her swimmers will be aiming to capitalise on familiar conditions when the 2022 Pan American Aquatics Age Group Swimming Championships splashes off, at the National Aquatic Centre in Couva, at 10.30 am, on Thursday.

The meet will end on Sunday.

The teams that will compete are Aruba, Barbados, Colombia, Curacao, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Grenada, Guatemala, Guyana, Honduras, Jamaica, Panama, Peru, Puerto Rico, Suriname and TT.

A team of 32 swimmers will represent TT at the championships in the 11-12, 13-14, 15-17 and 18 and over categories.

Adult tickets are $80 and children Under-11 pay $40. Adults can also pay $305 for a season pass which allows you to enter on all four days. A season pass for a child cost $160.

With just one day left before the start of the meet, McLean said her athletes must now keep focused with all the preparations complete.

“We need to stay healthy and stay in the zone mentally and keep the body full nourished and rested and gear up to go for four days,” McLean said.

On competing in front of their home crowd, McLean said, “One of the captains Johann-Matthew (Matamoro) was saying…that they have their family, friends and then we have the home-court advantage (in) that you are familiar with the facility, you are familiar with the pool so it is kind of an advantage and a good feeling that you want to do your best and make everyone proud.”

Matamoro and Jahmia Harley are the two TT captains.

Many of the TT swimmers who won medals at the 2022 Carifta Games, including Nikoli Blackman and Zachary Anthony, are on the Pan Am team and hoping to make a statement again.

“Even though it was a small Carifta contingent we had a really great performance,” McLean said.

She said the Pan Am meet will include more countries and TT must be ready for the challenge.

“I think the competition is fierce, but I think the kids will do their best.”

Cherelle Thompson, who represented TT at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, is one of the leaders of the TT team.

“She takes a keen interest in the younger ones and in terms of creating a pathway for these kids, a direction that they can go and also in a mentoring aspect…she cheers on, she motivates and is a team player.”

McLean said it is tough to predict whether the freestyle, backstroke, breaststroke or butterfly will be TT’s strong point at the meet, but said in the butterfly, backstroke and freestyle there are quality swimmers.

TEAM TT

Under-17

Alexandro Agard, Jaden Mills, Madara Edwards, Maidan Edwards, Keiera Audain, Sydney Look Fong, Zachary Anthony, Giovanni Rivas, Liam Carrington, Shaelen Reece, Darren Belfon, Anpherne Bernard, Amari Ash, Gabrielle Vickles, Joy Blackett, Tyla Ho A Shu, Nikoli Blackman, Johann-Matthew Matamoro, Aaron Stuart, Josiah Changar, Akash Singh

18 and Over

Cherelle Thompson, Johnnya Ferdinand, DeNicha Lewis, Jahmia Harley, Gabriella Donahue, Ornella Walker, Aqeel Joseph, Christian Awah, Delroy Tyrell, Josiah Parag, Cadell Lyons