V.I. swimmers set records at P.R. meet
Published: February 24, 2012
Font size: [A] [A] [A]
More than 25 youth swimmers from the St. Croix Dolphins Swim Team set numerous personal best times during a meet at the Albergue Olimpico Sports Training Center in Salinas, Puerto Rico last weekend. The Dolphins finished with the most team points at the meet.
More than 25 youth swimmers from the St. Croix Dolphins Swim Team discovered what it's like to live and compete at a real Olympic Training Center when they visited Salinas, Puerto Rico last weekend.
These local swimmers set numerous personal best times at a meet sponsored by the Albergue German Rickehoff Swim Team, but just swimming at the Albergue Olimpico Sports Training Center was a special experience.
The facility provides a sports school and training center for athletes of all levels, from recreational teams to the Olympics, and supports a variety of sports, including baseball, basketball, gymnastics, soccer, cycling and swimming.
The swimmers stayed in dormitory-style rooms in the Athletes Village, which has a capacity of 380 and included three meals per day. The swimmers also had the opportunity to interact with other sports teams using the facility, including fencing, basketball and soccer teams. The village was located adjacent to the swimming pool, which included an Olympic-sized (50-meter) 10-lane pool, a 25-meter pool and a diving well.
The host team invited 13 local teams to participate, which included over 300 competitors. In the meet, the Dolphins hoped to score as many personal best times as possible and qualify additional swimmers to compete in the upcoming CARIFTA Swimming Championships, which will be held in the Bahamas in April.
The 29-member Dolphins contingent had 27 swimmers between the ages of 7 and 18. Two guests - Portia Norkaitis from the St. Thomas Stingrays, and visiting Long Island, N.Y., resident Marina Preiss - also competed.
The Dolphins swam in 97 events, which was a total of 191 individual swims, and they competed in the following boys and girls age groups: 9-10, 11-12, 13-14, 15-16, and 17-18. The team produced 121 personal-best times.
Each swimmer who finished between first through eighth place earned team points for the Dolphins. The team traded the first-place position in total points accumulated several times over the weekend with another local team, Humacao, but eventually triumphed and took the first-place high point trophy.
The Dolphins also qualified additional swimmers for CARIFTA. Evaluna Wittmann, 12, qualified in the 100-meter breaststroke, and Matthew Mays, 13, qualified in the 200-meter butterfly. There are now 12 Dolphins and one Stingray qualified to compete in this regional competition, with several more expected to qualify in the coming month.
The next event on the Dolphins calendar is a home meet at the Dolphins pool on March 10-11.
For full results of the meet in Puerto Rico, visit the Dolphins online at www.dolphinsvi.org. For additional information about the Dolphins Swim Team, call coach John Vasbinder at 719-7946 or email stcroixdolphins@gmail.com.
For additional information about the St. Thomas Stingrays Swim Team, call 779-7872 or email info@sttswimming.org. Classes include infant, toddler, children and adult learn-to-swim courses in addition to the competitive youth and masters swim teams.
To comment you must first create a profile and sign-in with a verified DISQUS account or social network ID. Sign up here.
Comments in violation of the rules will be denied, and repeat violators will be banned. Please help police the community by flagging offensive comments for our moderators to review. By posting a comment, you agree to our full terms and conditions. Click here to read terms and conditions.
