Coach Baksh gives update on Persaud's Road to Tokyo Swimmer to leave for training Camp in Tokyo on July 11

Coach Baksh gives update on Persaud’s Road to Tokyo Swimmer to leave for training Camp in Tokyo on July 11

Jul 06, 2021 Sports

By Sean Devers

Kaieteur News – At 23, Jamila Sanmoogan had one foot in Japan and was set to attend her second Olympics but according to Sanmoogan, she was not selected by GASA to attend the Purto Rico International swim meet which was held from May 20-23 which was a qualifying event.

Aleka Persaud

At that Meet Aleka Persaud made the ‘B’ final in the 50 freestyle, which is an open meet and surpassed her times from Carifta and came very close to qualifying for the 50m freestyle at the Junior Pan Am games.
Aleka was named by FINA as the fastest female Guyanese swimmer.
At just 15, National Junior Swimmer Aleka replaced Sanmoogan as the lone Guyanese female swimmer in the Tokyo Olympics which runs from July 23 to August 8, 2021 in Japan making her the youngest Guyanese Olympian
Aleka has already broken five Caribbean Under-14 swimming records and is aiming to qualify for Junior Pan Am Games in November in Colombia after she returns for Tokyo.
According to Aleka’s Orca Swim Club Coach, Sean Baksh, the talented teen who captured three gold medals at the 2091 CARIFTA Games, is set to depart Guyana on July for a nine-day training Camp in Tokyo.

Sean Baksh

“Currently Aleka is in Guyana training…she along with Coach Shyka Gonsalves leave Guyana for a training camp in Tachikawa-City Tokyo Japan on the 11th July, scheduled to arrive on the 13th July in Tokyo….the camp will run up to the start of the Olympics,” informed Baksh.
“Aleka will only swim one event at the Olympics the 50M freestyle so all training is currently focused on that event…. there is a minimum of endurance work that is being done to keep her stamina in check but the majority of the work is sprint based with a lot of race simulation, starts, breakouts and underwater kicks transitioning to her arm stroke …plus mental training (visualisation etc.).
Coach Baksh disclosed that Aleka, who has already broken five Caribbean Under-14 swimming records, is doing her dry land work.
“But we have eased up on the actual gym work (weights). She is still doing some running, abdominals, pushups, pullups, dips and other bodyweight exercises,” coach Baksh posited.
“I am not the Coach selected by the GASA to be at the Olympics this year that honour goes to Coach Shyka Gonsalves who is in line with the GASA’S coach rotation plan. I will still be involved in the work that Aleka will be doing while in Japan through communication with Coach Gonsalves,” Baksh continued.
According to her Coach, Aleka is mentally prepared for this as she has shown strong spirit at the last two meets they attended both of which were high level Olympic qualifiers and were attended by some of the best swimmers in the region and beyond.