Sabrina Lyn, a star in Jamaican aquatics, expressed her excitement upon being selected to represent Jamaica at the upcoming Paris Olympics, set to commence later this month.
“I was really excited when I got the call that I have made the Olympics,” said Lyn, who will be making her first appearance at the Games. “It’s such an honour.”
The 20-year-old from Louisiana State University joins fellow swimmer Josh Kirlew, based in the UK, and diver Yona Knight-Wisdom as part of Jamaica’s three-member aquatics team. Kirlew will also make his Olympic debut.
On August 3, Lyn will compete in the women’s 50-metre freestyle at the Paris La Défense Arena, marking her entry into the summer Olympics. Lyn and Kirlew secured their spots through universality places, offered to National Olympic Committees (NOCs) without any qualified athlete or relay team. These spots allow NOCs to enter a maximum of two athletes, one male and one female, in one event each.
Lyn’s selection followed her impressive performance at the 2024 Carifta Championships in The Bahamas, where she clocked a personal best of 25.82 seconds in the Girls’ 18 and over event, significantly improving from her previous best of 26.64 seconds. This time was the fastest recorded in The Bahamas since 2017. The fastest woman ever from the region Bahamian Olympic finalist Arianna Vanderpool -Wallace took the national title then in 25.80.
Vanderpool-Wallace established the Carifta region’s benchmark with a national record of 24.31 seconds at the 2015 Pan American Games. She set a Games record of 24.31 seconds during the heats and secured a notable victory with a time of 24.38 seconds in the final.
In Paris, Lyn will be the fourth Jamaican woman to compete in the 50-metre freestyle at the Olympics. The trail was first blazed by Angela Chuck at the Sydney Games, where she finished 49th with a time of 27.48 seconds. Chuck, a Brown University standout, later made history by becoming Jamaica’s first gold medallist at the Central American and Caribbean Games in 2002.
Following Chuck, the legendary Alia Atkinson made her mark in five Olympic appearances. In the 2004 Athens Games, Atkinson improved Jamaica’s best time and placement in the 50-metre freestyle, finishing 44th in 27.21 seconds. At the 2008 Beijing Games, Natasha Moodie achieved a major milestone, breaking into the top 40 with a 15-17 age group record of 25.95 seconds, which also stood as the national record. Atkinson’s final Olympic appearance in the 50-metre freestyle came at the 2012 London Olympics, where she matched Moodie’s placement of 37th with a time of 25.98 seconds.
Atkinson later set a new national record of 25.47 seconds at the 2018 Central American and Caribbean Games in Colombia.
Lyn aims to build on these achievements in Paris, with her sights set on surpassing the Jamaican Olympic best time of 25.95 seconds and the national record of 25.47 seconds.
The Paris Olympics will officially run from July 26 to August 11, with the swimming competitions starting on July 27.
The Opening Ceremony is scheduled for Friday, July 26. This year, in a departure from tradition, the ceremony will not take place in a stadium. Instead, dozens of boats will carry athletes and performers along a 6-kilometre (3.7-mile) route on the Seine River, starting from the Austerlitz Bridge beside the Jardin des Plantes and concluding at the Trocadero.
Jamaica will field 58 athletes across four sports at the Paris Olympics. The delegation includes 54 athletes in athletics, swimmers Sabrina Lyn (50m freestyle) and Josh Kirlew (100m butterfly), diver Yona Knight-Wisdom (men’s 3m springboard), and judoka Ashley McKenzie (men’s extra-lightweight, 60 kg).
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