Guyana’s swimming standout Raekwon Noel produced a sensational, gold-medal performance at the XXV Central…

Guyana’s swimming standout Raekwon Noel produced a sensational, gold-medal performance at the XXV Central American and Caribbean (CAC) Games in the Dominican Republic on Tuesday, shattering both national and Games records in the Men’s 200m Individual Medley (IM). Noel capped off a historic day by powering to gold in the evening’s A final, stopping the clock in a monumental 1:59.35s. In doing so, he became the first Guyanese swimmer to break the sub-two-minute barrier in the event, further smashing the national record he had set earlier in the morning and establishing a brand-new CAC Games record (RCCG). Noel produced a masterclass performance in the final to hold off Mexico’s Humberto Najera, who took silver in 2:00.07, and Guatemala’s Erick Gordillo, who claimed bronze in 2:01.29—erasing Gordillo’s previous Games record of 2:00.97 set in 2023. His golden swim in the final followed an equally dominant morning session at the Juan Pablo Duarte Aquatic Center, where Noel first served notice by registering 2:01.73s to win his heat. That performance comfortably erased his previous national mark of 2:04.01s as he touched the wall ahead of Puerto Rico’s Xavier Ruiz (2:02.38s) and Guatemala’s Sebastian Bermudez (2:02.65s). The 200m Individual Medley is widely recognized as one of swimming’s most grueling events, requiring athletes to demonstrate peak stamina and technical mastery across all four disciplines: butterfly, backstroke, breaststroke, and freestyle. Noel executed all four legs with precision to cement his standing among the region’s elite. It was an equally historic outing in the pool for top female swimmer Shareefah Lewis, who produced a landmark swim to capture the national women’s 50-meter freestyle record. Swimming out of lane 8, Lewis posted a rapid 26.95s in her heat to become the first Guyanese woman to break the 27-second barrier, erasing Aleka Persaud’s previous national record of 27.42s. She returned for the B final later in the day and went even faster, lowering her newly established national standard to an impressive 26.69s. Fellow Guyanese swimmer Ariel Rodrigues also competed in heat 1 of the 50m freestyle, clocking 28.63s to finish 5th, which placed her outside the qualifying spots. RESULTS: