The Tribune

By BRENT STUBBS

Senior Sports Reporter

bstubbs@tribunemedia.net

THE Bahamas national team is expected to return home from the CARIFTA Triathlon & Aquathlon Championships with a total of four medals, inclusive of a pair of silver and bronze each and a fifth place overall.

Team Bahamas collected 38 points from the triathlon and 29 from the aquathlon for a total of 67. Barbados won the overall total of 145 (72 and 73 in the triathlon and aquathlon respectively. Bermuda got second with 115 points (63-73), Aruba was third with 73 (39-34) and Trinidad & Tobago got fourth with 69 (32-37).

On Saturday, Team Bahamas got a silver from Erin Pritchard and Malcolm Menzies in the girls and boys 13-15 age group respectively, while Ralph Wood picked up a pair of bronze in the men’s 20-21 age group in Saturday’s triathlon and the aquathlon swim on Sunday.Other results posted are:

Female 16-19 - Kami Roach was fifth and Sienna Culmer-Mackey seventh.

Female 13-15 - Anjaleah Knowles was sixth and Issa Bournas 10th.

Male 13-15 – Ayden Bain was fifth, Enea Garvasini 20th, Launy Duncombe 21 and Lenin Hamilton 23.

Female 11-12 - Taylor Knowles was 13th

Male 11-12 - Jayden Smith was sixth, Sibby Potter ninth, Lauchlan Menzies 13th, Callum Pritchard 16th, Tristan Johnson 19th and Mirko Gervanisi 20th.

In addition to the aquathlon on Sunday, teams also participated in the team relays, but the Bahamas didn’t get on the podium in any of the combined or mixed relay events.

Head coach Cameron Roach, who was assisted by Sylvia Bateman, said they are super excited about the team’s performance because they saw a lot of determination, concentration and will on the faces of the athletes.

“They didn’t just perform, they performed better than I could have hoped for,” Roach said. “The team has ended today (Saturday) with very high spirits and confidence, we are sitting exactly where we want to be sitting after day 1 of competition.”

Roach said the competition was extremely fierce this year.

“Watching the development of all counties in our region over the years, it’s evident that a lot of time in development and training is flourishing,” he said.

“The teams are strong and the talent is amazing. It’s an exciting time for our sport and even more exciting for me to see our athletes compete and excel on this stage.”

Team Bahamas, managed by Lori Roach with Grand Menzies and Barron ‘Turbo’ Musgrove as chaperones, will take today to relax before they head home on Tuesday.