NATIONAL record-holder Aleka Persaud last weekend also became a Goodwill Swim Meet record-holder as well as Guyana’s Hannibal Gaskin, while Team Guyana finished fifth at the meet which concluded last Sunday at the Centre of Excellence Swimming Pool, Macoya in Trinidad and Tobago. Guyana finished fifth with 501.5 points, while the event was championed by the Trinidad team who successfully defended their title after amassing 1 477 points.
Trinidad and Tobago warded off the efforts from their nemesis, Suriname, who trailed just behind with 1 325.50 points.
Barbados placed third with 821.50 points and the St Lucia National Team were fourth with 534.5 points. Last place went to the Bahamas Swimming Federation who finished with just 88 points.
Guyana ended with 29 medals – 21 from individual events and 8 relay medals. The haul included seven gold, nine silver and 12 bronze medal performances.
Persaud was by far Guyana’s most decorated swimmer at the meet landing five of the seven gold medals, and being one of only three Guyanese swimmers to land gold at the event. Gaskin and Onika George were the only other two swimmers to strike gold.
Persaud also ended with a silver medal, which she collected for her record-breaking performance. Young Persaud swam for 36.20 secs in the Girls 8-and-under 50m butterfly, tearing down the 37.40 secs record set by Zoe Anthony last year. Persaud barely made it past Trinidad’s Joy Blackett who was just behind clocking 36.98 secs.
Having a remarkable year since the season began, Persaud, who has been collecting nothing but gold medals on the local scene, more than proved that she could also hold her own in the regional arena.
Swimming in one of the most packed category, Persaud also ruled the roost in the 100m freestyle (1:14.55s), 50m breaststroke (45.29s), 50m freestyle (33.55s), and 50m backstroke (41.01s), while she also landed a silver in the 100m IM.
Blackett proved to be Persaud’s biggest competition, finishing behind her in the 50m breaststroke, freestyle and backstroke, before finally getting the better of Persaud in the 100m IM. Blackett’s 1:27.88s was just enough to overcome the 1:29.84s swum by Persaud
In the Boys’ 15-17 category Gaskin’s 1:58.66s in the 200m freestyle was just enough to surpass the 1:59.29s record set by Barbados’ Justin Babb back in 2009.
Gaskin also collected a silver and a bronze – individual medals – in the 100m butterfly (59.84s) and 100m freestyle (54.80s), respectively.
With one gold, three silver and a bronze, Onika George was Guyana’s second most decorated swimmer. George earned silverware in the Girls’ 15-17 category, in the 100m freestyle (1:02.82s), and 100m backstroke (1:12.16s), and bronze in the 200m freestyle (2:20.37s). In the 100m freestyle George was upstaged by Barbados’ Keisha Rouse in a record-breaking 1:01.05s.
Leon Seaton, Phillip DeNobrega, Accalia Khan, Patrice Mahaica and Omar Adams rounded out the medal-earners in the individual category.
Seaton came back home with two silver medals, winning them in the Boys’ 9-10 50m freestyle (29.80s) and 200m freestyle (2:29.94s).
DeNobrega in the Boys’ 15-17 category garnered two bronze in the 100m backstroke (1:04.78s) and the 200m IM (2:23.52s).
Khan, Mahaica and Adams landed a bronze medal apiece – Khan in the Girls’ 15-17 50m backstroke (33.10s), Mahaica in the Girls’ eight-and-under 50m breaststroke (50.11s), and Adams in the Boys’ 15-17 200m freestyle (2:03.71s).
Additionally, the swimmers all picked up relay medals from being a part of the relay teams in their respective categories.
The Girls’ 15 -17 team won bronze in the 400m medley, 200m freestyle and 400m freestyle relay. The Boys’ 15-17 team included Adams, Gaskin, DeNobrega and Jamal Skeete who copped silver in the 400m freestyle, and bronze in the 200m freestyle.
The Boys’ 13-14 team, comprising Nathon Hackett, Antonio Rodrigues, Alex Winter and Antonio Hussein, had silver in the 400m and 200m freestyle relays. Persaud spearheaded the Girls’ eight-and-under relay team for bronze in their 200m freestyle relay.

By Tamica Garnett