Neckles breaks masters record

Article by RIA GOODMAN and ANMAR GOODRIDGE-BOYCE

BARBADOS got their golden moment to bring the curtain down on the pool swimming competition of the Central American and Caribbean Swimming Championships (CCCAN) at the Aquatic Centre on Tuesday night.

The Bajans captured four golds, two silver and two bronze. And to make the final day of the five-day competition even more memorable, three-time Olympian Nicholas “Nicky” Neckles didn’t only take one of the golds but also smashed the World Masters record in the Boys’ 18 and Over 200 metres backstroke event.

Neckles, 40, triumphed in a time of two minutes, 9.08 seconds to erase the record in front of a home crowd, who included former Barbados swimmer and Olympian Angus Edghill.

Edghill had shattered a Masters world record on home soil back in 1991 when he prevailed in the 800 metres freestyle in 9:00.26 minutes.
“I was barely able to sleep last night [Tuesday]. My body was exhausted but I was just so excited. I can’t wait to attend the [18th FINA World Masters Championships] in South Korea from August 5-18 and go faster there,” Neckles told NATIONSPORT.

He said the fact that Edghill was on hand to see his performance and also present the medal to him was quite emotional.