… Sanmoogan performs tomorrow

GOODWILL Games gold medallist Hannibal Gaskin opens Guyana’s performance at this year’s Rio Olympics when he takes to the pool in the Men’s 100m butterfly today at the Olympic Aquatic Stadium in Rio, Brazil. Gaskin is in heat one of six, competing against 41 other swimmers in the event. In his heat Gaskin will be coming up against Mali’s Oumar Toure and Myanmar’s Thint Myaat. The 18-year-old starts off with an entry time of 59.99 seconds, equal to the entry time of Myaat.
The leading entry time is held by none other than leading Olympic gold medallist Michael Phelps himself. Phelps is in heat six with an entry time of 50.45 seconds.
Gaskin is one of only two swimmers on the Guyana Olympic team, which also includes four athletes.
The other swimmer is Jamila Sanmoogan and she will be participating in the Women’s 50m freestyle tomorrow; she is in heat five of 12 heats, and has an entry time of 28.60 seconds.
Like all the years gone by the swimmers are participating at the Olympics on ‘wild card’ entry, with the only mandatory criterion being that they participated at last year’s FINA World Championships in Kazan, Russia.
The athletes on this year’s team are Winston George, Troy Doris, Aaliyah Abrams and Brenessa Thompson.
National record holder Thompson will also be performing tomorrow when she hits the track in the Women’s 100m heats. Thompson is the only athlete on the team who has qualified to participate in more than one event, so she will also be performing in the Women’s 200m heats next week Monday.
George will follow with the Men’s 400m heats also scheduled for tomorrow, while Abrams will be in the Women’s 400m when the heats begin this Saturday.
Also performing on Monday will be Doris, who will enter the competition in the Men’s triple jump.