One of the Caribbean region’s most anticipated annual age-group swimming competitions, the 26th Rodney Heights Aquatic Centre Invitational Swimming Competition, wrapped up on April 12 after four days of intense, high-stakes racing. The 2024 edition of the tournament drew 31 competitive swim clubs from across the Caribbean, turning the venue into a gathering ground for the region’s most promising young aquatic talent to test their skills against top peers. Among the competing delegations was St. Vincent and the Grenadines’ Black Sands Swim Squad (BSSS), a small but determined team of 13 swimmers that defied expectations to deliver a standout performance, securing 8th place in the overall club rankings against a deep field of competitors.
The BSSS delegation was represented across every official age division of the competition, with young athletes ranging from pre-teen swimmers under 8 years old to mature adult competitors 18 years and older. The full roster included Sarai Williams and Janai George in the Girls 8 & Under category, Clarence Drakes in Boys 8 & Under, Clarice Drakes and Azalea Cox in Girls 9–10, Methuselah McLean and Anthony George in Boys 9–10, Amelia Des Vignes in Girls 11–12, Jonathan George in Boys 11–12, Kione Deshong in Boys 13–14, Seth Byron in Boys 15–17, Daliana Guanipa in Girls 18 & Over, and Kyle Dougan in Boys 18 & Over.
Eight-year-old Sarai Williams turned heads from the very first race of the competition, shattering the existing invitational record for the Girls 8 & Under 50m backstroke with a finishing time of 44.58 seconds. By the end of the tournament, Williams had built on that opening momentum to claim two gold medals and three silver medals, earning second place overall in her age division. She came within a fraction of a point of claiming the event’s coveted sprint challenge title, capping off a breakout performance for the young rising star.
It was 13–14 age group swimmer Kione Deshong, however, who delivered the most historic results for the BSSS team. Deshong dominated all breaststroke events in his division, setting new invitational meet records in three distances: 50m breaststroke with a time of 31.75 seconds, 100m breaststroke at 1:09.32, and 200m breaststroke at 2:30.20. His performance in the 200m breaststroke was particularly notable, as it broke the long-standing St. Vincent and the Grenadines national record previously held by Alex Joachim, who had set the old benchmark of 2:33.14 years prior. By the close of the competition, Deshong left with a total haul of 5 gold, 2 silver, and 2 bronze medals, securing the undisputed first place and age group championship title for his division.
Other BSSS swimmers also turned in consistent, medal-winning performances across the event. In the Boys 15–17 division, Seth Byron demonstrated impressive stamina and race craft across 10 events, taking home 2 gold, 3 silver, and 5 bronze medals to earn multiple podium finishes against tough competition. Senior competitor Kyle Dougan held his own against a field of experienced adult swimmers in the Boys 18 & Over category, capturing three bronze medals to round out the team’s individual results. In the event’s relay competition, Jonathan George added another bronze medal to the team’s tally in the boys 15 and over division.
The BSSS delegation was led by head coach Kathleen Bute, with Desmond Cox serving as team manager for the four-day competition. In a post-meet statement, the club shared that it was deeply pleased with the effort and results from all 13 of its competing swimmers, noting that many achieved personal best times even outside of their medal-winning finishes. The club also extended formal congratulations to fellow St. Vincent and the Grenadines competing teams, Blue Marlins and H2O Lions, on their own participation and successful achievements at the regional invitational.