Seventeen-year-old T&T swimming starlet Zuri Ferguson could not hide the unbridled joy of youth after making her debut at the Olympic Games in Paris, France.
Yesterday in the swimming pool at the Paris La Defense Arena, Ferguson touched the wall in third place in heat two of the women’s 100-metre backstroke in a time of one minute and 02.75 seconds to finish 27th overall from 36 participants. She did not advance as only the 16 fastest from the heats qualify for the semifinals.
“It was so great to be out here with the best, and I am glad to have gotten the opportunity. There is so much to learn from today,” she said after her historic Olympic debut.
“It was an honour to start off this way for T&T; everyone in the camp has been very accommodating,” added Ferguson, who finished behind Aviv Barzelay (1:02.30) of Israel and Kazakstan’s Xeniya Ignatova (1:02.51). No swimmer from the heat progressed to the next round.
Questioned on the race itself, Ferguson, who has a best time of 1.01.06 but finished the event in 1.02.75, admitted, “Definitely it was not my best race, but I am pretty satisfied and I feel I have learned a lot, and now I want to be back here in 2028.
“I have been able to watch what is working, observe it, and use it going forward. Now I will watch the other events and enjoy being with the team and supporting them in any way I can for the next few days,” noted the T&T swimmer.
Zuri’s parents are from T&T. Her father, André Ferguson, is from Siparia, and her mother, Carina Newallo-Ferguson, is from Belmont.
She pointed out that “both of my parents are sports-minded people; my dad used to play football, and they continue to be very supportive, and without them, I would not be here today.”
Zuri, who was born in the USA and will be attending the University of Florida in 2025, told Guardian Media, “I have not decided what field I want to specialise in as yet, but I also want to tell all young people to never give up on their dreams and just keep trying, and you will achieve. I always wanted to come to the Olympics but never expected it to happen now, so I am driven to do even better in 2028.”
Zuri, who competed at the Central American and Caribbean Swimming Confederation Championship in Mexico, setting meet records in the 15-17-year-old 50m backstroke, 100m backstroke, and 200m backstroke events in the first quarter of 2024, and resides with her parents in the USA, said when she returns to T&T, it’s an exciting experience.
“I love it; I come all the time, and just the atmosphere, the family, and the people are great,” she said.
Questioned about her favourite “Trini” food, Zuri had to think for a while and then said, “It’s probably between doubles and macaroni pie, but I love how I have been getting so much positivity from the people and everyone here at the camp.”
Women’s backstroke 100m Heat 2 results
1. Aviv Barzelay (Israel) - 1:02.30
2. Xeniya Ignatova (Kazakhstan) - 1:02.51
3. Zuri Ferguson (Trinidad and Tobago) - 1:02.75
4. Lucero Mejia (Guatemala) - 1:03.42
5. Sum Yuet Cindy Cheung (Hong Kong) - 1:03.45
6. Amani Alobaidli (Bahrain) - 1:04.27
7. Celina Márquez (El Salvador) - 1:04.55
8.Elizabeth Jimenez (Dominican Republic) - 1:04.99
