Carolyn Johnson, Gleaner WriterTHE 16TH Caribbean Islands Swimming Championships (CISC) splashes off in Puerto Rico tomorrow, but Jamaica's water polo teams will be making no waves.
After placing second in female water polo at the 2004 Championships and winning gold medals at this year's CARIFTA Swimming Championships for both male and female teams, the water polo team will be staying home.
Instead, only swimming and synchronised teams will represent the island at the CISC which runs through to June 30.
CANCELLED
"For water polo we had to cancel because of lack of funds," John Eyre, president of the Amateur Swimming Associaion of Jamaica (ASAJ), told The Gleaner in an interview yesterday.
"We decided to bypass water polo and focus on the ASUA Pan American Junior Water Polo Championship," Eyre said. "Junior Water Polo Championships doesn't have swimming or synchronised swimming. Because water polo has two competitions we decided to do away with one game."
This competition will be held in August in Montreal, Canada. He described this as a bigger competition.
"We hope to qualify for Junior World Championship at that competition," Ayre stated.
Sponsorship, Eyre says, is a perennial problem. He explained that because they are now operating three disciplines, funding has become a grave issue.
STRESS
"When it was only swimming it wasn't so bad. Now trying to find funds for three or four teams is adding more stress on the system."
Ayre further stated that each water polo team has 13 players and a management team of two. Added to this is a physiotherapist.
To combat costs, he said: "The philosophy is that for age group teams parents or families have to help find funds. For CARIFTA 100 per cent, CISC 75 per cent and CCAN 65 per cent.
"It's unfortunate and affects us negatively. We depend a lot on parents, which limits how much we can develop inner-city youth who have problems finding funds," the ASAJ president told The Gleaner.
But while funding is an issue, coach and vice-president of the association, Garth Henriques, says the timing of external examinations versus swim meets is also a problem. The problem was further compounded this year because the majority of players sat CXC and CAPE exams this term.
DISAPPOINTED
"We're very disappointed we weren't able to go. The problem is that every year at this time the kids are taking exams and not being able to train. This year in particular an overwhelming amount is taking exams. Having just won gold medals, we didn't want to go with an unfit team or a team not ready to perform. We took the choice to stay home and go to Junior Pan-Am. (This gives us) more time to get teams ready and save some money. Although disappointed there is not much we could do," Henriques said.
Despite the problems affecting the association, Eyre is confident in the representatives on the two CICS teams.
"To the best of my knowledge everything has been going well for the synchronised and swimming teams. This year I think we have a slightly smaller team. I don't expect to place as high (as last year) but we should have a good quality."
