– Hannibal Gaskin and the road to Rio
By Daniel Haynes
Hannibal Gaskin was only seven-years-old when he began what would later become his life’s passion in the sport of swimming.
Initially, swimming was something he just wanted to do – to keep him busy, for fun and the like – no dreams of competing in the Olympics or anything of the sort.
But 11 years and several international meets later, he could be considered our local swim Phenom, and his outing to the 2016 Summer Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro proves that.
Hannibal (named after Hannibal Barca, a Punic military commander from Carthage who lived in the second and third century and is considered one of the greatest military commanders in history) is the second of four children born to Han and Dominic Gaskin; you may know them, his mother is the President’s daughter, and his father is the Minister of Business.
With his middle name that of his grandfather, the President, and the fact that he was catapulted into the status of “the President’s grandson” just over a year ago, you’d say he has a lot to talk about, but not Hannibal. In fact, in scheduling the interview, he gave us just 15 minutes.
At first glance, or, first encounter rather, Hannibal comes across as quiet, seemingly reserved, and doesn’t come across as a chauvinist, which you could be forgiven for thinking of a chap 5’7’’ and packing 155 pounds of lean muscle.

After interacting with him for a few minutes you would be well within your right to ask, “Is he really this quiet?” The truth is, yes, he is.
Even when water is surrounding him and he is swimming or he is talking about swimming, (something that is his passion) he still retains his quiet demeanor.
In the pool, he is like a shark, stalking his prey and delivering quick and decisive blows when taking on the competition.
His first swim club was and remains Dorado. His first swim meet, came at the age of 10, upon recommendation by his coach.
Academics had always come first in his life, and rightfully so, with a family heritage steeped in the blood of both Queen’s College and Bishops’ High School. He attended Marian Academy up to Grade Six, where he secured marks to take him to Queen’s College.

Swimming, however, continued to dominate his life throughout his Queen’s days. This proved to be no great challenge; he managed to balance both swimming as well as academic life and he proved this when he wrote the examinations offered by the Caribbean Examinations Council. He was in the Tech stream in school, and he wrote nine (9) subjects, passing all nine with seven distinctions. Later on, he’d like to continue his studies, though he is not sure yet. Another dream of his is to be a mechanical engineer.
For now, swimming is ahead of other pursuits. He has travelled to several Goodwill Games, Inter Guiana Games, and many world championships, with those meets taking him to China, Peru, Paraguay, Turkey and quite a few Caribbean islands. Superstitious persons would say that his competing at the 2014 Youth Olympic Games in China was a glimpse of what was to come two years later, this year and Rio.

“It’s tiring sometimes, the travelling, the competing, the entire workouts, but it’s necessary and that’s something you have to remember every morning you wake up,” he says, the disciplined, committed side of him coming out.
“Swimming is my life; it takes up most of my day, but to be at the next level, I have to work, it does get hard.”
His dedication to swimming was displayed when he was chosen to undertake a seven-month FINA High Performance Swim Training stint at their centre in Delaware, Ohio. It was a stint that almost didn’t happen due to technical issues.
It was on the day of the deadline itself that his Dorado coaches – Stephanie Fraser and Shyka Gonsalves – found out about the programme. The scramble to get all the information necessary for the application would take at least two days, but swimming’s governing body granted the time extension and within a week he found out that he was selected.
Once he was selected, there was the rush to Ohio and all that comes with settling in that seemed overwhelming at first. But once he was settled, he could see how the programme would make a world of difference.

With the training, under coach Thad Schultz, his technique has definitely improved and he feels freer in the stroke. And he needed that, and more, for what would be his biggest showcase yet.
“I was speechless, it was the best feeling in the world,” he says of his initial reaction when he learnt he was selected to represent Guyana at the Olympics.
“On a scale of 1-10 it was an 11.”
At the age of 18, Hannibal is taking on the biggest challenge of his life, competing against some of the best in the world and his entry time of 59.98 puts him 9.53 seconds behind Michael Phelps, who is also competing in the 100m Fly.
Going into the games he’ll be taking his knowledge, his recent training experience, his self-belief and the belief of his coaches. Between those elements, coupled with his track record, as well as his determination and his approach to swimming and life, Hannibal embraces the challenge, and when the Games open, he will represent his country with pride, and the entire nation will be wishing him on.
As for being quiet, a revelation at the end of the interview: “Maybe I’m not when I’m hanging out with my friends or family, and just being myself.”