Cardigan Boys Swim Their Way to Caribbean Championship

A year ago Cardigan reported on sixth-grader Adlai Nixon ’25, who was a member of Team Jamaica that earned second place at the 2022 CARIFTA Swimming and Open Water Championships in Christ Church, Barbados. While Adlai contributed to two silver-medal relay teams, he did not win any medals in the individual events.

“It was an incredible experience for him,” Adlai’s mom Hilary Nixon reported last year. “He set many personal bests and came away very motivated to return next year and win an individual medal. He knows it will take a lot of work, but he’s willing to put in the time.”

A year later, we can definitively report that Adlai followed through on his training plans and solidly accomplished his goal.

In early April, Adlai, who is from Jamaica, returned to the CARIFTA championship, this year held in Curacao. In the weeklong event, Adlai won bronze medals in the 100m Fly, 200m Freestyle, 200m Individual Medley, 100m Freestyle, and 50m Fly and won a silver medal in the 50m Freestyle; he was also a member of the Jamaica 400m Freestyle Relay team that won silver. 

“We are very proud of Adlai,” says Hilary. “He was determined to win medals and went in with a winning mindset.” 

Adlai was joined this year at the CARIFTA championships by his cousin, Cameron Brown ’25. Cameron set many personal records in his races and made the finals in several events, including the 50m Fly, 200m Individual Medley, 50m Breaststroke, 100m Breaststroke, and 100m Fly. His best performance came in the 100m Breaststroke in which he came in fourth.

“The boys showed a lot of character and determination during the lead-up. A lot of their training sessions this winter were at 5:00 a.m. They braved many cold and snowy mornings to prepare while staying on top of their school work. Their work ethic was tremendous.”

Javette Nixon, Adlai’s father

“Cameron did so well,” says Hilary. “It’s hard to make finals and earn points at CARIFTA and Cameron delivered. He is a real fighter in the pool. He just doesn’t give up.” 

Cameron’s mother, Eleanor Brown added, “It was an extraordinary experience as a parent to witness––absolutely unforgettable.” 

“I am really happy for them,” adds Javette Nixon, Adlai’s father. “The boys showed a lot of character and determination during the lead-up. A lot of their training sessions this winter were at 5:00 a.m. They braved many cold and snowy mornings to prepare while staying on top of their school work. Their work ethic was tremendous.”

That training included sessions at the Upper Valley Aquatic Center (UVAC) in White River Junction, VT, as well as at their home pool in Jamaica during vacations from Cardigan. But Javette also attributes the boys’ success to the cross-training they did at Cardigan: “I would like to thank Cardigan Athletics generally for giving the boys the opportunity to participate in a range of sporting activities outside of swimming while they are at school. Both of them played soccer during their first semester this school year, and that played a big part in their overall fitness when they got back to swimming.”  Eleanor also noted that they are playing lacrosse now in the spring, as they prepare for a summer of swimming.

In honor of both boys we ring the Cardigan victory bell and look forward to hearing about their future goals and accomplishments.

"They seem determined to make it to CARIFTA again in the future,” says Hilary, “and maybe even the CCCAN Championships [a biennial aquatics championship for countries in Central America and the Caribbean]. We will be supporting them every step of the way as long as this is what they want.”