The Tribune

By BRENT STUBBS

Senior Sports Reporter

bstubbs@tribunemedia.net

Arianna Vanderpool-Wallace added another major international accolade to her collection as she came through with the bronze in the women’s 100 metre freestyle final to put the Bahamas on the medal chart on just the fourth day of competition at the 17th Pan American Games in Toronto, Canada.

Competing in the first final event for Team Bahamas and her first of three events, Vanderpool-Wallace clocked 54.15 seconds to trail Canadian Chantal Van Landeghem, who turned the tables on the Bahamian sensation as she touched the wall in 53.83 to shatter the previous games record of 53.85 set by American Natasha Coughlin in the preliminaries earlier in the day.

Vanderpool-Wallace, 25, won her heat in 54.00 for the second fastest time over Van Landeghem, who did 54.31 for the third fastest time. Coughlin’s record-breaking performance pushed on top of the chart. Van Landeghem, however, saved her best for last.

Also competing in the event was Bahamian Ariel Weech. She competed in heat two where she was sixth in 57.80 as Brazil’s Larissa Martins won in 55.01. While Weech finished 18th overall to qualify for the B final, Martins had the fifth fastest time to get into the final.

Weech, 23, improved slightly on her preliminary time by clocking 57.79 for seventh in the B final. Liliana Ibanez of Mexico won the race in 55.90.

Today, two more members of the swim team will compete. Laura Morley is entered in the women’s 200m breast and Dustin Tynes is in the men’s event. Then on Thursday, Vanderpool-Wallace will be back in the 100m fly. Friday will be a busy day for the entire team with Morley and Tynes featured in the 100m breast, Weech and Vanderpool-Wallace back together in the 50m free and Joanna Evans will be making her debut when she competes in the 400m free.

Then on Saturday, Evans will close out competition in the women’s 800m free.

So far, the Bahamas has seen competition in three of the five disciplines at the games.

Philip Major Jr was the first out of the blocks when he lost 6-4, 4-6, 6-3 in his first round singles in men’s tennis against Yannik James of Grenada on Saturday at the University of Toronto Scarborough Tennis Center and Kianna Dean didn’t advance out of the Gymnastics Artistic women’s competition at the Toronto Coliseum where she posted an all-around score of 32.600 with her appearance on the vault (12.250), uneven bars (2.550), balance bean (8.150) and the floor (9.650).

Still waiting to compete is the three-member boxing team of Carl Hield, Keishno Major and Rashield Williams. They are being coached by Andre Seymour and Valentino Knowles. The boxing competition is scheduled to start at the Oshawa Sports Centre on Saturday.

Next week, the focus will be on the CIBC Pan Am/Parapan Am Athletics Stadium where the athletics competition will take place, starting on Tuesday. More than 20 athletes have been named to the team, which will be coached by Rudy Ferguson, assisted by Rupert Gardiner and managed by Ralph McKinney.

More than 7,500 athletes from 41 nations are competing in 36 sports during the games that are slated to wrap up on Sunday, July 26.