Harbour Gold Swimmers Shine Internationally
Members of Harbour Swim Club’s Gold Squad recently delivered exceptional performances in international competitions.
Coach Shona Palmer reflected on the performance of the swimmers in this programme, several of whom have achieved record-breaking and National Festival meet qualifying standards.
Coach Palmer said, “We celebrate the achievements of our swimmers who have delivered outstanding performances both in the UK and the Caribbean. It’s wonderful to see their hard work and dedication pay off.”
Competing in the British Championships, Sam Williamson, currently attending Bath University in the UK, established a Bermuda Open Record in the Men’s 400M Individual Medley in a time of 4:35.62
In the recent Carifta Games held in Curacao, Harbour Gold swimmers Myeisha Sharrieff, Brandon Adkins, Thomas Cechini and Connor Hupman exceeded expectations and set the tone for a successful spring and summer-long course season.
Sharrieff, who will be college-bound in the Fall, set a Personal Best of 30.29 in the 50m Backstroke Women’s 15-17 Age Group. This earned her a fourth-place finish, narrowly missing the podium but easily achieving a Youth Commonwealth Games and CAC Games Qualifying Standard. Sharrieff also set a Personal Best time in the 50M Butterfly and secured impressive finals spots in this event as well as in the 100M Backstroke. To round out this impressive sequence of finals performances, Sharrieff played an integral role in assisting Team Bermuda to earn Medals in the Relay events.
The Boys’ team boasted numerous personal bests and finals placements across an impressive range of sprint and distance events as Thomas Cechini and Connor Hupman entered new Age Group categories. Senior swimmer, Brandon Adkins, achieved qualifying standards for the Youth Commonwealth Games and CAC Games this summer in three out of four events at the Carifta Games, the 50M Backstroke, 200M and 400M Freestyle, just missing the podium in the latter two.
Teammates Cechini and Hupman also recorded significant Personal Best times in multiple events with a heavy event schedule. Hupman made the finals in five out of seven events and Cechini, was similarly impressive with multiple Personal Bests and earned top 10 finishes in the 1500M, 800M and 400M Freestyle.
Harbour Gold Coach, Jenny Smatt said, “Many of our swimmers have already achieved their season goals and are clearly a critical part of the future of Bermuda swimming. Not only do their times earn them consideration for representing our country at the highest level, they show the necessary dedication and tenacity required for long and successful athletic careers. We are excited for what’s to come and couldn’t be more proud of the example they have set for our younger swimmers in and out of the pool.”
