Deandrea Hamilton | Editor
Turks and Caicos, August 01, 2025 – Last month, Turks & Caicos’s Ethan Gardiner and Arleigha “Lee” Hall represented the nation at the 2025 World Aquatics Championships in Singapore, facing off in elite international competition from July 27 to August 3. Hall swam the 50m butterfly and 50m freestyle, while Gardiner contested the 50m freestyle and 50m breaststroke.
A standout moment: Sixteen‑year‑old Ethan Gardiner shattered his own national record in the men’s 50m breaststroke,
clocking 33.63 seconds—improving on his previous 33.97 from CARIFTA earlier in the year. That time marked the first-ever appearance by a Turks & Caicos swimmer in a long-course heat at the world championships—a historic milestone for the TCISF.
While neither athlete advanced beyond preliminary heats, their presence alone signaled growing ambition from a federation forging its place on the global stage. Hall and Gardiner demonstrated competitive poise and national pride alongside swimmers from more established programs. Up next: the 29th Goodwill Swimming Championships, held August 15–17, 2025 in Barbados.
This year Northern Caribbean spotlight intensifies as Turks & Caicos competes as a full member federation for the first time—not merely as an invitee. That membership was formally accepted after a two-year application process led by TCISF delegates Roydoya Alleyne, Bennett Williams, Lincoln Martin, and Shanwell Gardiner.
The Turks & Caicos flag will officially appear on the championship’s cover page—a visual emblem of recognition and inclusion.
The team heading to Barbados comprises nine swimmers, supported by two coaches and one team manager. With expanded representation this is the largest Turks & Caicos squad yet at the Goodwill Games, reflecting the federation’s upward trajectory.
In summary:
- Singapore: Gardiner and Hall achieved key personal and national benchmarks, highlighted by Gardiner’s record-breaking swim.
- Barbados Goodwill Games: Turks& Caicos enters officially into a more competitive, member-based structure.
This dual appearance caps a transformative summer—TCISF is steadily moving from hopeful newcomer to an organized, recognized force in regional and international swimming. As momentum builds, the focused question now becomes: what’s next? Will more records fall, more qualifiers emerge, and more history get written under the TCI banner?