The quartet of Josiah Changar, Gabrielle Vickles, Savannah Chee-Wah and Nikoli Blackman combined to win T&T’s first gold medal at the Central American and Caribbean Swimming Confederation (CCCA) Championship in Oranjestad, Aruba, on Friday night.
Competing in the first of four relay events on the night’s programme at the Rolly Bisslik Olympic Pool, the team combined for a time of one minute, 50.29 seconds for the gold ahead of Bahamas (1:50.64 mins) and Cayman Islands (1:52.74 mins).
Prior to that, the Chatoor siblings, Jada and Graham, repeated their podium finishes for T&T in their long-distance events.
Fifteen-year-old Jada was second in the 15-17 Girls 800m freestyle in nine minutes, 19.09 seconds behind Honduran Michelle Ramirez (9:17.91 mins) while Aruban, Florence Kock got bronze in 9:21.30.
Last year, Jada captured a silver medal in the 13-15 Girls 800m freestyle at the National Aquatic Centre in Balmain, Couva, in nine minutes, 18.10 seconds behind Ramirez (9:16.06 mins).
Graham also won silver on Friday night, when he touched the wall behind 16 minutes, 40.51 seconds to trail Colombian Juan Manu Morales (16:20.43) with Bahamian, Luke-Kennedy Thompson, third in 17:03.22.
The 17-year-old got bronze in the 15-17 Boys 1500m freestyle at Couva 12 months ago, behind Puerto Rico’s Alexis Soto and Panama’s Andes Cores.
For this year’s championship, the T&T contingent is not as strong as last year’s team, which included former US-based Olympian Dylan Carter, who was a stand-out for T&T, which is also without Florida-based Gabriela Donahue, Abraham Mc Leod, David Mc Leod and Adriana Gooding.
