There were no second round fortunes for Haiti’s Alexandre Grand'pierre, Antigua and Barbuda’s Jadon Wuilliez, or Guyana’s Raekwon Noel in the pool as both failed to progress from their respective heats on the opening day of the Paris Olympic Games at the Paris La Defence Arena on Saturday.
Wuilliez and Grand'pierre, finished second and fourth in their 100m breaststroke heats after clocking 1:02.70 and 1:02.85, respectively, but did not make the semi-finals as those times placed them 26th and 28th overall.
Noel also had a credible second-place finish in his 400m freestyle heat, but his time of 4:02.29 wasn't enough to progress. He finished 34th overall.
Wuilliez, 22, has had a wonderful track record thus far, earning a gold medal in the 50m breaststroke and a bronze in the 100m event at the Central American and Caribbean Swimming Championships (CCCAN) held in Mexico in June earlier this year.
Grand'Pierre, 21, is Haiti’s current record holder for the 50m and 200m breaststroke and the 200m individual medley (IM). He also won multiple New England Small College Athletic Conference (NESCAC) championships and is an NCAA Division III All-American. Earlier in June, he won the 100m breaststroke at the CCCAN in 1:02.39.
Meanwhile, this was Noel’s Olympic Games debut. The 18-year-old has established himself as one to look out for in the future, as he shattered five team records for the South Jersey Aquatic Club at the Middle Atlantic Senior Championships. He finished his short course season, winning five races and setting nine personal best times in addition to his records.
Noel won the competition and broke team records in the 500 free, 1000 free, and 200 fly. He boasts a track record in swimming, with five gold medals at the 2023 Carifta Swimming Championships. Breaking five nation records.