Cayman’s squash players swept the board, winning gold, silver and bronze in the women’s singles on Tuesday at the International Island Games in Orkney.
The squash players’ impressive performances, along with a strong showing by Cayman’s gymnasts and swimmers, bring the islands’ tally to 17 medals, with three more days of competition ahead.
In the final of the women’s singles squash, Cayman was guaranteed to win a silver and a gold, as two of the islands’ players, Jade Pitcairn and Emma Turnbull, faced off against each other at The Pickaquoy Centre courts Tuesday. Pitcairn took the gold, 3 sets to 1, with a score of 6-11, 11-6, 11-4, 11-9.
Cayman’s Michaela Janse van Rensburg made it a squash medal trifecta when she won bronze in the women’s singles against Jersey’s Beth Garton, 3 sets to 1.
Cameron Stafford, playing for Cayman, made it through the heats to play in the bronze medal playoff in the men’s singles, but lost to Gibraltar’s Ivan Flores Vela.
As of close of competition on Tuesday, the Cayman team had won four gold medals, four silver and nine bronze in gymnastics, squash and swimming at the games in Orkney, off the coast of Scotland.
Going in strong
Pitcairn, speaking to the Compass by phone from Orkney on Tuesday, said, “Going in, we knew we had a really strong team, but I’m very proud of us for pushing forward.
“It was a great feeling to have all three of us standing on the podium and hearing our national anthem.”
The trio won’t be resting on their laurels through, as they head into doubles and team events in the coming days.
“Doubles start tomorrow [Wednesday], and that’s where our focus is turning to. Then it’s the team event on Thursday,” Pitcairn said.
She said she hopes Cayman will do equally as well in the double matches as they did in the singles.
“We are going in pretty confident,” she said, “but at the Island Games, there are always really good teams.”
As well as Pitcairn, Turnbull, Janse van Rensburg and Stafford, brothers Jace and Julian Jervis are also representing Cayman in squash at the games. They are among 32 athletes from the Cayman Islands taking part.
Swimmers win 8 medals
Cayman’s swimmers got off to a superb start on Monday, winning three medals, followed on Tuesday by another five.
Sierrah Broadbelt, who won gold in the women’s 100m butterfly on Monday, then went on to win a silver in the 50m butterfly and a bronze in the 100m backstroke on Tuesday.
James Allison’s finishing time of 1:46:92 in the 200m freestyle earned him another gold for Cayman on Tuesday. The day before he and teammates Daniel Kish, Wil Sellars and Jack Clark-Terrell won bronze in the 4x50m relay.
On Tuesday, Kish finished third, winning bronze in the 100m butterfly, earning his second individual medal after also landing bronze a day earlier in the 200m butterfly.
Sellars also won a bronze Tuesday, with his 4:29:12 finish in the 400m individual medley.
Cayman gymnasts set high bar
Cayman’s gymnasts have also put in impressive performances, winning six medals on Monday, with Karthik Adapa securing five, including gold in the parallel bars – the first gold medal for Cayman in gymnastics – two silver (pommel and rings) and two bronze (floor high bar). Justin Spencer also won bronze in the pommel on Monday.
In the overall men’s team events, Adapa and Spencer placed first and third, respectively.
The gymnastics events resume with qualifying rounds on Thursday and finals on Friday.
The Island Games, which were established in 1985, are held every two years and bring together competitors from 24 island groups around the world. This year, the games are being held in Orkney for the first time, and 1,660 athletes are participating.
For more information and to follow the action, visit www.orkney2025.com.
