By Seaford Russel Jr. – Courtesy of the Cayman Compass.

Throughout the 30 illustrious years of the Flowers Sea Swim, thousands of swimmers have hit the waters off Seven Mile Beach, including several Caymanians who have represented Cayman at the Olympic Games.

Brothers Shaune and Brett Fraser, Andrew Mackay, sister and brother Lara and Geoffrey Butler, Heather Roffey, and Jillian Crooks – Cayman’s youngest-ever Olympian – are amongst local swimmers who have competed at the Flowers Sea Swim, with each placing amongst the top 10 finishers at least once over the years.

Making history

Roffey, 35, who became the first female swimmer to represent the Cayman Islands at the Olympic Games, initially took part in the Flowers swim in 1998, where she placed third in the women’s category at just 11 years old.

She went on to compete in nine more of the swims, including her most recent during the 28th annual event in 2020. After missing the 2021 race, Roffey said she is looking to return for the 30th swim, despite being pregnant.

“If my doctor says that it’s fine to do, I’ll compete in the race this year eight months pregnant,” Roffey told the Cayman Compass.

Should Roffey take part on 11 June, she would be the first Olympian on record to participate in the open water race while pregnant. She says the Flowers swim continues to be her favourite open water event.

“There is a lot of excitement leading up to it and the Flowers family does a great job organising the [swim],” she said. “It’s a very family-friendly event, getting everyone from the community involved, and you usually see the same faces.

The event is very special, not only for the swimming community but the greater Cayman community.”

Preferred swim

Fellow Caymanian Olympian Fraser shares similar views to Roffey when it comes to the Flowers Sea Swim being his preferred local open water swim.

“I can’t say enough good things about the Flowers Sea Swim,” he said. “It is my favourite open water race, with each year surpassing the previous event. The experience and both the serious and leisurely competition the Flowers family have cultivated are remarkable.”

The three-time Olympian has competed in the swim more than 10 times, hitting the podium at four events and placing first back-to-back in 2006 and 2007.

The 32-year-old swimmer last competed at the event in 2019, where he placed seventh overall behind American Olympian Alex Meyer, who won gold at the FINA World Open Water Swimming Championships in 2010.

Fraser said he will continue to participate in the Flowers Sea Swim for as long as his body allows him to do so.

More than 20 international Olympians and world champions have competed in the event over its 30-year history. In 2020, when Jillian Crooks, 15, raced the mile for the first time and took third female place overall, she became the seventh Caymanian Olympian to participate.

Roffey said that while she was among the first local Olympians to compete in the swim, she hopes more athletes like Crooks will take part in the future.

“I may be the first, but I won’t be the last; there are many more to come,” she said.

By Seaford Russel Jr. – Courtesy of the Cayman Compass

After completing his 37-hour swim around Grand Cayman to raise awareness of plastic pollution in the islands, 37-year-old Oly Rush hit the water again – this time for a much shorter open-water endeavour.

Rush told the Compass that he hoped to compete against some of the Olympians during the Flowers Sea Swim, but a lingering shoulder injury from his ‘Grand Swim’ nearly a month ago forced him to take the event a little easier.

“I’m so competitive,” he said. “I’ve been a competitive swimmer since I was about a foot tall. So, it was really difficult for me, I’m not going to lie. I was never going to win because there are some incredible swimmers here… so I was just taking it all in and enjoying it.”

Rush, who hails from Dorset, England, swam alongside fans and friends, “chatting” throughout the one-mile journey, while capturing footage on his GoPro.

“I had to hold it in one hand, and I was able to just talk to people, get some footage with people swimming and just enjoying the whole thing and taking it all in.”

He added” “I’ve always known about the Flowers swim. I’ve been following it for a few years now and seeing so many incredible swimmers come this way and, obviously, a lot of local talent as well…it was just absolutely incredible.”

Rush was the 321st swimmer to cross the finish line. He clocked in at 42:05 according to the official results.