KINGSTON, Jamaica — Jamaica’s nine-member swim team returned to the island Monday night following their fairy-tale exploit at the Central American and Caribbean Confederation (CCCAN) Championships in Puerto Rico where they won an impressive 22 medals.

The team comprising four female and five male swimmers had very little preparation through the Aquatic Sports of Jamaica (ASAJ) Time Trials prior to the championship, and that resulted in coaches and swimmers alike refusing to make any real predictions where medals are concerned, as they braced for their first real taste of competitive action in over 14 months.

As such, most of the focus was centred around personal best times. However, by the end of the five-day championship, the swimmers were not only left beaming about the over 50 PBs clocked, but also about the bumper medal haul of six gold, eight silver and eight bronze.

That tally was also complemented by a few national age group and senior records, as well as PanAm Juniors B cut times, ensuring that Jamaica will have a few prospects in Cali, Colombia later this year.

The team of Christanya Shirley, Giani Francis, Leanna Wainwright, Zaviya Cameron, Nelson Denny, Kito Campbell, Kaheem Lozer, Zack-Andre Johnson and Waldon McIntosh, placed sixth overall with 242 points, behind Puerto Rico, Venezuela and Dominican Republic, which secured the top three spots.

Each member of the team won at least one medal, but Shirley stood out for the girls winning medals in the 50m butterfly (silver), 50m freestyle (gold), 50m breaststroke (bronze) and the 100m butterfly (bronze). She produced personal best times in all but the 100m butterfly.

Denny was the golden boy, winning three of Jamaica’s gold medals in the 50m butterfly, 50m backstroke and the 100m freestyle.

Calabar’s Kito Campbell, who won the pole Vault at the ISSA Boys’ and Girls’ Athletic Championship earlier this year, took down two national age group and senior records in the 50m and 100m breaststroke. 

In the 100m breaststroke, Campbell clocked 1:06.78 in the heats and then lowered it to 1:06.68 in the final, erasing the previous mark of 1:07.30 set by Brad Hamilton. 

The 18-year-old then clocked 29.06 in the heats of the 50m breaststroke and again lowered 28.55 in the final, becoming the first Jamaica male swimmer to break the 29-second barrier for the event. That time was also a CCCAN record.

Leanna Wainwright also took down the national record in the 50m backstroke.

Georgia Sinclair, ASAJ’s vice president of swimming joined parents and Kaizen Swim Club’s head coach Rory Alvaranga at the Norman Manley International Airport to welcome home the athletes.

“The ASAJ is extremely proud of this little but tallawah team. We are particularly pleased with the great, resilience and determination demonstrated in their approach to the races and we are extremely proud of Kito Campbell in particular who broke two national records. So overall this was a awesome performance by a small team that went to Puerto Rico and showed their class,” Sinclair told OBSERVER ONLINE.

Sherdon Cowan