Fellas I am not a big fan of swimming. How would allyuh assess T&T Carifta performance so far? I know Bahamas and Barbados always had good Caribbean swimmers.
for one thing TT standards are set based on previous finals 5th place finish. Therefore TT only carry possible guaranteed finalist and medalist. The other Islands seem to go with the games standards.
Thus in many events we had no swimmers across all age groups, cause of our hard standards.but sure nuff, Bahamas and Barbados picking up lil points here and there even where they are weak. TT, no points. I wouldn't say we could win, but for sure with 2 points here, a point there we could mount a better challenge..
What most disappointed me was the lack of supporters.. I think the whole of Bermuda and Guadloupe/Martinique was there. Bahamas was strong too, and Barbados was home. There were a few high ranking govt officials from those countries in the crowd as announced and that I recognized from last meet in Jamaica..they were blowing conch (well mosly the Loupians) and beat drum, and shaking cowbells in the crowd like everybody else.. well everybody except Trini supporters.. we had maybe 20 ppl. 3 families of 3, 2 families of 2, and bout 7 or less mothers..the only time yuh could hear a trini something is when we get a gold, seemed rare..drowning we out..Go Jahmia, Go Jabari..was sounding like
squeak..meanwhile them other supporters even drowing out the DJay.
A few Barbados ppl around us like they bring they family for ah outing, dem didn't know they had a whole section yet..they don't know nothing about swimming, asking "wha duor struke call main" - ah say freestyle - and "we'ave sumbuddy inna dis here?" - ah say yes almost every other heat ..dem jump up, "Go Borbaydus, Go".. finally ah learn to tell dem no..the man wife say (yuh kno dem smarter)," but daiz a yela cap", ah say yes, that is SVI, they wearing the same color...Mammy say God go punish meh. How the Hell the whole ah Bermuda,Martinique, who had different colour matching Tshirts every day, could organize deyself and come, and according to the TT parents, they say ppl saying it to expensive..them other small islands obviously richer than we, even if we have more money than them...cause all ah dem deh...
One of the long term TT parents say we fall off bad, she say we used to have a separate taxi, just for we instruments..
I ask a older Bahamian lady, how her grand doing..she say, she doh have nobody here, she's been coming for 15 years now to support the kids..is like is she duty now.. So what is we problem ? We, that is what.
add: I was told many of the top older swimmers and quite a few younger especially Bahamas , Jamaica, Aruba are US based - mainly Florida. One exceptional swimmer from Bahamas - local based - Joanna Evans, broke a few of the Carifta distance records and well as participated in a couple relay records has verbally committed to Texas 2015. She was a Bronze medalist at youth Olympics last year.
http://swimswam.com/texas-gets-verbal-youth-olympic-games-bronze-medalist-joanna-evans/So to the top Suriname boys. etc.
We had Jabari (commited to NC state) and Tyla Martin (commited to Florida), my boys and 2 girls 1, 11-12 and 1 13-14 (US Based).
I was also made known that the current administrative body not keen on foreign swimmers, as most of their kids are local based..but this may have been more opinion than fact. Except it was opined by one of the long term Carifta swimmers who is foreign. They also said, many of our top young swimmers who are now foreign, and some who have always been foreign, (names called) are totally disenchanted with the support and communication and rather not return... sounded familiar. I just listened, cause I don't know. Yet the lack of communication and organization makes one wonder..