President of the Bahamas Aquatics Federation Algernon Cargill was returned unopposed to the post at the federation’s Annual General Meeting (AGM) on Saturday.
The executive body supporting Cargill, who has been president since 2003, will include First Vice President Lynne Fraino; Second Vice President Rochelle Bastian and Third Vice President John Bradley.
Georgette Albury will be secretary while Andrea Strapp is assistant secretary and Erald Thompson will serve as treasurer. Kendric Albury is assistant treasurer.
Cargill, who has seen the number of swimming clubs double from six to 12 during his tenure, said that among the major successes of his last term was the securing of a contract with Cable Bahamas during the staging and broadcast of the 2017 national swimming championships after their agreement with the Royal Bank of Canada had come to an end.
Under his leadership, the Bahamian junior swimmers won three consecutive CARIFTA titles and five of the last six and the water polo team won gold medals in all three divisions.
He said for the new term, the federation will target the rehabilitation of the Betty Kelly-Kenning National Swim Complex, which houses the only 50-meter pool in the country.
“The federation will partner with the National Sports Authority to execute this over the next term,” said Cargill. “We are far way away from the early years of this facility in 2000 when the Betty Kelly-Kenning centre was considered to be the best facility in the English-speaking Caribbean. Throughout the next four years, we have to change the look of the deteriorating facility we now have.”
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T&T's Dylan Carter cops gold in men's 50m freestyle at Swimming World Cup
Trinidad and Tobago’s ace swimmer Dylan Carter secured his second gold of the World Aquatics Swimming World Cup Series as he produced a breathtaking performance to land win the men’s 50-metre freestyle in Singapore on Thursday.
Carter, a three-time Olympian, won the event in a brisk 20.82 seconds and left the field in his wake as he was the only swimmer under the 21-second barrier in the final. He won ahead of Australia’s Isaac Cooper (21.01s) and Germany’s Marius Kusch (21.04s).
The 28-year-old Carter is expected to line up in the heats of the men’s 50m backstroke and 100m freestyle on Thursday’s evening session before bringing the curtains down on his campaign in the men’s 50m butterfly on Friday.
Samuda empathizes with Comm Games Federation over scaled-down 2026 event; urges possible compensation for excluded sports
Jamaica Olympic Association (JOA) president, Christopher Samuda, has expressed understanding and empathy toward the Commonwealth Games Federation (CGF) as they face the challenge of hosting a scaled-down version of the 2026 Commonwealth Games in Glasgow, Scotland.
With the event, traditionally a grand celebration of sport, culture, and unity, being reduced in size due to economic pressures, Samuda acknowledges the difficulties facing the CGF while also stressing the need to find ways to address the impact this decision will have on several sports that have been cut from the programme.
Diving, rugby, squash, badminton, table tennis, hockey, triathlon, and cricket are among the sports that will not feature in the 2026 edition.
The CGF initially struggled to find a host after the Australian state of Victoria withdrew last year, before Glasgow, known for its rich sporting history as a host city—including hosting the 2014 edition of the game—stepped in to save the 2026 Games. However, this comes with the reality of hosting a more compact edition than previous iterations.
For Samuda, the situation is an unfortunate but understandable outcome in a global landscape.
“The circumstances in which the Commonwealth Games Federation unavoidably found itself inevitably led to a scaled-down edition of the games. I regret the exclusion of badminton, table tennis, squash, and hockey; for those sports, the Jamaica Olympic Association has earmarked for real transitioning. The CGF’s decision was clearly influenced by commercial factors and the economy of a diminished sporting agenda, for at the end of the day, the games must be viable to ensure sustainability,” Samuda said.
However, Samuda also noted that the decision to reduce the scope of the Games, which will see several sports omitted from the 2026 programme, raises important questions about the future of those disciplines within the Commonwealth sporting family.
He argued that the CGF must find ways to compensate the sports that have been excluded, as they are integral to the diversity and spirit of the Commonwealth Games.
“Going forward, however, the CGF has to develop a strategy that will compensate those sports that are being excluded so as not to lose the interest and confidence of their international federations, commercial partners, and most importantly, the players and athletes for whom sports exist,” he reasoned.
Despite the current challenges, Samuda remains optimistic about the future of the Commonwealth Games and the role it plays in uniting nations through sport. He sees the 2026 edition in Glasgow as an opportunity to innovate and adapt, ensuring that the Games remain relevant in a changing world.
The Games will feature a 10-sport programme across four venues within an eight-mile corridor, with more than 500,000 tickets made available for spectators.
Athletics and swimming are included as compulsory sports for 2026, while there will also be track cycling, gymnastics, netball, weightlifting, boxing, judo, bowls, and 3x3 basketball.
“It is critical that the next games, while being an economic reinvention, should retain that unique traditional value that has given many sports and invaluable space on the Commonwealth sporting agenda and which have made it competitive as a sporting and commercial product amidst growing competition for the partnership dollar and public viewership and appeal,” Samuda said.
Jamaica successfully defends CGA 4-Ball Golf Champs title for fifth-straight year
Team Jamaica returned to the island earlier this week as five-time winners of the Caribbean Golf Association’s 4-Ball Championship, which was held in Trinidad and Tobago at the Plantation Golf and Country Club.
Since 2020, when Jamaica won the overall trophy or the Ambrose Gouthro Cup, the island’s golfers have distinguished themselves by winning the cup each year including this year having amassed 73 points over Trinidad and Tobago’s 56.
The other islands in the six-team championship were Bermuda in third place with 38 points, the Bahamas on 34, Barbados on 23, and the Cayman Islands placed sixth with nine points.
Jamaica entered the championship with the largest number of golfers, numbering twenty, followed by host country Trinidad and Tobago with sixteen. There were six-trophy categories within the championship. Jamaica won four of the six categories, came second in one and fifth in the other, while putting on a dominant display over its Caribbean partners. The male/female trophy breakdown showed three wins and a fifth place for the men, while the women won one and came second in the other.
Dr. Mark Newnham and Owen Samuda teamed up to capture the Francis Steele & Perkins Cup for the senior men ahead of Bermuda after posting seven under par 209 over the three rounds, to one under par 215 by Bermuda. They had two very good rounds of three under par each for the second and third rounds, respectively, while scoring one under par 71 in the first round.
The duo of Radcliff Knibbs and Keith Stein posted even more impressive scores to take the Higgs & Higgs Trophy. Their three-day total of eleven under par 205 resulted from three under par 69 in the first round and four under par 68 in the last two rounds. The B team of Metry Seaga and Mike Glieckman came in second with a four under par 212 score, while Trinidad came in third with one over par 217.
The Ashraph Ali Trophy for Masters or men over 70 went to Jamaica’s men’s team of Dorrel Allen and Victor Hudson. They posted a combined score of 220 to share the trophy with the Bahamas, who posted the same score.
The local duo of Andre Dhanpaul and Delroy Johnson were no match for Bermuda in the quest for the Ramon Baez Romano Trophy for mid amateur men. Bermuda’s total score was nine under par 207 while Jamaica posted 24 over par 240 for fifth place.
The combination of Michelle McCreath and Maggie Lyn grabbed the Dessie Henry Trophy for females 45 and over. They scored 252 ahead Trinidad and Tobago’s 264 in second place.
Trinidad and Tobago turned the tables on Jodi Munn-Barrow and Lisa Gardner to take the Maria Nunes Trophy for ladies 25 and over. Trinidad and Tobago’s combined score of 240 was just two strokes ahead of Jamaica’s 242.
President of the Jamaica Golf Association, Jodi Munn-Barrow, expressed delight at the accomplishment.
“I am extremely proud of team Jamaica at this year’s 4-Ball Championships, victorious in all except one category this year and a second place finish. We continue to streak five years as overall champion and everybody went out there, the team played hard, the conditions were tough, course was windy but we all played to our game plan and I am very very proud of all of all of the team members," she said.
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