There were a lot of high hopes for this year's CARIFTA swim team going into Aruba, and after the first day of competition, the young swimmers are certainly living up to the hype. They are showing that the praise is justified.
After day one of the 29th CARIFTA Swimming Championships in Savaneta, Aruba, The Bahamas sat atop the leaderboard with 163 points. Trinidad & Tobago was second with 124.50 points and host country Aruba rounded out the top three with 124 points.
Trinidad & Tobago leads the medal standings, but the CARIFTA Swimming Championships is based on points. Trinidad & Tobago has 10 total medals - six gold, two silver and two bronze. The Bahamas is second in the medal standings with 14 total medals - four gold, six silver and four bronze, and Aruba is third in the medal standings with 13 total medals - three gold, three silver and seven bronze.
The swimmers who were expected to have big time performers have come through for the team so far, swimming with confidence and poise. Some wondered if the pressure placed on them would be too much, but the young team has managed to work itself into contention for the top prize - an accolade Bahamian swimming has never achieved at the CARIFTA level.
Last year's squad did not perform as expected, as many of them struggled against regional competition. For the returning members of the team, it served as a learning experience. It was a lesson in how to deal with pressure, and it also served as an incentive for the swimmers to push themselves and each other harder, because they now know what it takes to shine in regional competition.
After capturing 14 medals on the first day, the team has grown tighter as a unit, and that could only give the swimmers more confidence moving forward.
The performances so far also serve as a testament for the work that Head Coach Andy Knowles and his team are doing with this group. They are making sure that the young swimmers are well prepared for this year's CARIFTA Swimming Championships.
Margaret Albury Higgs was one of those swimmers who had a lot of high expectations, and on the first day of competition she dominated the 13-14 girls 200 meters (m) breaststroke. She finished the race in a time of 2:41.04, seven seconds ahead of second place finisher Rebecca Lashley of Barbados.
Laura Morley also continued to make her mark as one of the strongest swimmers in the region after her first place finish in the 15-17 girls 200m breaststroke.
The Bahamas has managed to field an athlete in almost every final, which shows the strength and depth of this year's team. Coach Knowles felt extremely confident that this group was going to be special, and so far they are proving that they have what it takes.

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