By LeVaughn FLynn, Staff ReporterAN 86-MEMBER squad has been selected to represent Jamaica at the 15th renewal of the Caribbean Islands Swimming Championships (CISC), which begins tomorrow at the National Stadium Pool at 6:00 p.m.
Forty-seven swimmers, 26 water polo players and 13 others for the synchronised swimming routine were selected by the Amateur Swimming Association of Jamaica (ASAJ).
Over 500 athletes from 20 countries will participate in this year's championships, which is an Olympic qualifying tournament.
The participating countries are Aruba, Guadeloupe, Antigua-Barbuda, Bahamas, Martinique, Barbados, Netherlands Antilles, Bermuda, Puerto Rico, Cayman Islands, St Lucia, Cuba, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Dominica, Suriname, Dominican Republic, Trinidad and Tobago, Grenada, the U.S. Virgin Islands and hosts Jamaica.
As the last regional qualifying tournament before the Olympic Games in August, the stage has been set for a highly competitive meet as the Caribbean's best swimmers dive into action tomorrow.
FULL-STRENGTH SWIM TEAM
Janelle Atkinson, Alia Atkinson, Angela Chuck and Jevon Atkinson have all qualified for the Olympics and will head a full-strength swim team as Jamaica aim to win the Championships for the first time.
They finished third in the synchronised swimming competition last year and fifth in the swimming segment for an overall fifth place finish, as Puerto Rico emerged as champions.
Olympic hopefuls Todd Johnson, Ramon James, Dominic Lee and Tamara Swaby will be seeking a place on the national team as they aim to clock their best times.
The male and female water polo team will also be aiming to win gold at the Championships as they were in consistent training over the past two weeks with the number one team in the world, Hungary.
"They had a tremendous effect on us," said president of the ASAJ, John Eyre. "The main purpose of them being here was to prepare us for the Caribbean Islands Swimming Championships and they had a significant amount of development on the team."
The water polo teams won gold at the recently held CARIFTA Games and following the CISC they will take part in the Pan American Junior Water Polo Championships in El Salvador in July.
Eyre added that for the most part everything is on stream for the Championships and he invited the public out to see the local athletes before they leave for the Olympics. The Championships runs until July 6.
