Crooks becomes 3rd Cayman Islands athlete to dive into an Olympics swimming Semi-Final event
Jordan Crooks fell short of advancing to the Olympics Final, but his performance in the Men’s 100-meter Freestyle at the 2024 Summer Olympics further cemented his spot as one of the best swimmers in the world.
Crooks touched the wall in 48.1 seconds in Tuesday’s (30 July) Semi-Final at the Paris La Defense Arena, the 13th-best time of the 16 swimmers competing in the semis. Only the top eight times advance through to tomorrow’s Final.
“Not exactly what I wanted, but, you know, things happen,” Crooks said after the race. “I gave it my best and it just wasn’t enough to make it back to the finals.”
Crooks entered the race as a serious contender to become the first Cayman Islands swimmer ever to advance to an Olympics Final. He swam the fifth-fastest time of the 79 athletes competing in the Heats round earlier in the day with a season-best time of 48.01 seconds. Swimming in lane 3 in the second of two Semi-Final races, Crooks was among the leaders early in the race but ultimately finished seventh in his heat.
“I know I can be faster, just didn’t happen on this day,” Crooks said. “I think there still were a few things I could’ve cleaned up. I think the first half was good. Second half just needed to be a little cleaner and have a stronger finish at the end.”
Crooks’ finish is the best of any Cayman Islands swimmer competing in the 100 Freestyle event at the Olympic Games. Shaune and Brett Fraser are the only other Caymanian swimmers ever to advance to a Semi-Finals at the Olympics, with both advancing to the semis in the 100 free at the 2012 Summer Olympics, in London. Brett also advanced in the 200 Free in London, where he finished 12th.
“It’s my first time here [at the Olympics] but I did try to set out to do the best I can in the events I came here to swim. So ultimately a Final is the goal. So it sucks, ultimately that didn’t happen but we still have more swims to do, so just [need to] focus on those.
“Just leave it in the past and move on.”
Crooks now turns his attention to the Men’s 50-meter Freestyle. The Heats round in that event takes place on Thursday, 1 Aug. The Semi Final will be held later that same day and the Final on Friday, 2 Aug. Crooks says he learned some things during his experience competing in the 100 free that he can apply to the 50.
“Definitely, just trust in the training and not to let the things around you rattle you,” he said. “Just focus on your lane, your job and do what you’ve got to do.”
Crooks will head into the 50 free with the 16th-best entry time of the 74 athletes competing in the event. He will swim in the 10th Heat of the event, which is slated to begin at 4:18 a.m. Cayman time.
Paris 2024 takes place 26 July – 11 August. Paris is the main host city with events held at 16 other cities throughout France and one in Tahiti.
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