The Amateur Swimming Association of Jamaica’s (ASAJ’s) High Schools and Tertiary Institutions and prep/primary schools swim meets have received a facelift with ISSA and Tastee joining forces to support the two-day meet scheduled for Friday and Saturday at the National Aquatics Centre in Kingston.

ISSA, the secondary schools sports organising body, has contributed $400,000 to the high schools and tertiary institutions meet to take place on Friday, while Tastee will partner with the prep/primary meet on Saturday to the tune of $150,000.

The details of the meets were revealed at a media launch at the Aquatics Centre yesterday.

The ISSA High Schools & Tertiary Institutions meet this year will be contested by some 25 high schools, including the John Gray High School out of Cayman Islands. Among the 501 swimmers down to compete for the coveted medals are overseas-based Jamaicans Jessie Marsh, who now represents St Andrews School out of Florida, and Barak Goren, who swims for McCallie School out of Tennessee.

Meanwhile, the newly branded ASAJ/Tastee Prep/Primary Schools’ meet will have 42 schools and over 617 swimmers venturing from as far as Negril for the event.

Both meets are always highly anticipated by coaches and swimmers alike and are expected to boast a high level of competitions over the two days as the young sensations and the country’s next generation of stars aim to make their mark.

These meets are where Carifta foundations are formed with the 100m breaststroke and the 100m and 200m freestyle all offer the ISSA athletes an opportunity to produce AA time in which two such times can land a swimmer a spot on the national development squad.

Leighton Christie, chairman of the ISSA school swimming committee, explained that their support is a part of a strategic mandate to increase the support of and athletes’ participation in “minor” sports.

“At ISSA, we provide an opportunity for participation in wholesome sports, so we look at all the sporting activities around and we provide an opportunity for a student to participate in these sports and swimming is no less.

“ISSA is now strategically looking at the minor sports and we are planning to move that to another level, so that we can compare with the major sporting activities, so we are looking forward to continue this association to bring swimming in high school to another level so we can have more schools participating,” Christie said in his address at the launch.

Tara Goulbourne, marketing and public relations manager at Tastee, was beaming at the prospects of a long and fruitful partnership with the sport.

“We are very proud to be associate sponsors for this meet because family education and sport through youth development are really the three pillars on which we build our corporate social responsibility programmes, so everything that we do in terms of sponsorship is generally geared around that. This sponsorship is just the beginning of a fruitful and beneficial partnership between Tastee and ASAJ,” she explained.

Emily MacDonald, a decorated national athlete who made the transition and will be in action on Friday, along with multiple record holder Zaneta Alvaranga in her first year in high school, will be seeking to maintain her unbeaten streak on her peers.

Rory Alvaranga, a member of the ASAJ schools’ swimming committee and meet co-ordinator, in anticipation of a highly successful weekend of competition, pointed to an even bigger vision for the sport.

“We want these meets to be like Boys’ and Girls’ Champs where scouts and swimmers from outside of Jamaica can come in. We want to form a partnership with Tastee and ISSA somewhere along the line to create a swim carnival, one that is rivalling the Greater Antilles, one where we may go three days which will provide a competitive environment for the children to showcase their talent and raise their swimming level here in Jamaica,” Alvaranga noted.