The Landon Von Kanel Memorial (LVK) Swim Meet, hosted by Stingray Swim Club (SSC) wrapped up this past Friday (27 September) at the Lions Aquatic Centre. The meet sponsored by Grant Thornton is done annually to honour Von Kanel, who was Cayman’s first CARIFTA medalist.
“Pastor Randy Von Kanel (Landon’s father) is a huge fan of swimming and has always been a huge supporter of us,” said SSC coach David Pursley. “It’s always good to have Pastor Randy come in and kick off the meet with a good prayer, to put everyone in the right state of mine; right before the races and it’s an honor to be able to host this event.”
The three day event was the first officiated meet since the Cayman Islands Amateur Swimming Association (CIASA) National Championships in early February. Over 250 people attended the LVK Swim Meet, including 171 athletes. Colligate level swimmers, Jordan Crooks, Zachary Moore, Krishna Adapa, and Sam Bailey also competed.
“They’re staying on island for this semester,” said Pursley. “They were going to school in the US this year but with the current situation they’re here. So it’s an interesting time for them but they competed well and it’s kind of nice to see them mixed in with everybody else.”
The meet also featured several swimmers setting personal best times but it was Jillian Crooks that broke six CIASA and National records in the 13-14 age group. Pursley says while the meet kept fans on the edge of their seat; it was only a warm up for bigger things to come.
“These swimmers got some great experience,” said Pursley. “Now we leave for the Brac in three weeks and that [is going to] be a big focus meet for us, so this was a good tune-up.”
In addition the overall swim meet was won by SSC with a total of 1,003 points, followed by Seven Mile Swimmers who scored 638 points and Camana Bay Aquatic Club finishing third with 456 points.
| Top girl in the 11-12 age group – Sierrah Broadbelt |
| Top boy in the 11-12 age group – Danny Kish |
| Top girl in the 13-14 age group – Jillian Crooks |
| Top boy in the 13-14 age group – James Allison |
| Top girl in the 15 & Over – Kyra Rabess |
| Top boy in the 15 & Over – Jake Bailey |
Cay 3 Sports 
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