Zuri Ferguson set for debut splash in 100m backstroke at Olympics

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Seventeen-year-old Attleboro High School student Zuri Ferguson will be the first athlete to dive into competitive action for TT at the Paris Olympics when she contests heat two of the women's 100-metre backstroke event from 5.13 am TT time on July 29 at the Paris La Defense Arena.

Ferguson is one of two swimmers who will be representing TT at these Olympics, with experienced campaigner Dylan Carter set to compete in the men's 50m and 100m freestyle events. Carter, who's participating in his third Olympics, will take the pool from 5.15 am on July 30 in the 50m freestyle heats, with the heats for the 100m freestyle to follow on August 1.

Ferguson will line up in lane six of her 100m backstroke heat. A total of 38 swimmers will contest five heats, with the 16 fastest swimmers advancing to the semifinals which will commence at 2.57 pm on July 29. The final will swim off at 2.56 pm on July 30.

Ferguson is looking forward to her debut appearance at the Olympics, and she posted the following to Instagram on July 28: "Ready to rumble. #Olympics."

"Training is going well. Continuing with the instructions from my coach who unfortunately had to return to the US. I would have preferred to get additional time in the competition pool but I am making the best of the opportunity," Ferguson said.

She's also grateful for the opportunity to rub shoulders with Carter as she hones in on the task ahead. "(The) mood (in the team) has been great. However, since coming to the village the team has been separated somewhat. Dylan and I are together and I am really benefiting from his experience of being here and taking in the whole atmosphere while also staying focused on my race."

Ferguson wasn't an automatic qualifier for the games, but she received a nomination from World Aquatics to compete via the universality places clause, which allows swimmers who didn't make the Olympic qualifying time – or the Olympic consideration time in some cases – to compete at the games.

Ferguson's entry time of one minute, 02.23 seconds (1:02.23) is the fourth-best entry time in her heat. Kazakhstan's Xeniya Ignatova has the fastest entry time among the heat two swimmers with a 1:01.45 clocking, with Israel's Aviv Barzelay (1:01.54) coming into the race with the second-best entry time. Barzelay will be competing at her second Olympics after registering a 15th-place finish in the 200m backstroke event at the Tokyo Olympics in 2021.

In June, Ferguson was a member of the TT contingent which grabbed 51 medals at the Central American and Caribbean Swimming Federation (CCCAN) Championships in Mexico, making TT the second-most successful country at the meet. Ferguson's accolades in Mexico included a gold medal in the girls' 15-17 200m backstroke in (2:17.85).

When Ferguson takes to the pool at the Olympics, she'll be hoping to make a memorable splash for team TTO and take her place among the top 16 swimmers in the 100m backstroke.