{"id":449066,"date":"2020-10-12T09:00:06","date_gmt":"2020-10-12T16:00:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.swimmingworldmagazine.com\/news\/?p=449066"},"modified":"2020-10-12T09:02:00","modified_gmt":"2020-10-12T16:02:00","slug":"special-report-puerto-rican-swimming-in-the-toughest-fight-in-the-history-of-our-island","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.swimmingworldmagazine.com\/news\/special-report-puerto-rican-swimming-in-the-toughest-fight-in-the-history-of-our-island\/","title":{"rendered":"Special Report: Puerto Rican Swimming In the \u201cToughest Fight in the History of Our Island\u201d"},"content":{"rendered":"

One week ago, Fernando Delgado<\/strong> was elected to a four-year term as president of the Federaci\u00f3n Puertorrique\u00f1a de Nataci\u00f3n (FPN). It’s an auspicious moment to take over Puerto Rico\u2019s national governing body for aquatic sports; the past few years the island has been buffeted by a string of unfortunate events.<\/p>\n

\"FPN-logo\"\u201cIn 2017, we were impacted by Hurricane Maria, which affected the aquatic facilities of Puerto Rico,\u201d Morgan Toro<\/strong>, outgoing FPN president, explained in an email. \u201cWe got up with great effort in 2018 and 2019. Then, 2020 began with earthquakes that brought us back to our knees. The COVID-19 pandemic hit us hard\u2026 [causing] our 1,000 swimmers to be out of the water for most of the year.\u201d<\/p>\n

Delgado, who narrowly outpolled Karen Oyola <\/strong>for the presidency, offered unity as a means to combat the FPN\u2019s current ills.<\/p>\n

\u201cOur campaign focused on being inclusive; we want to hear, understand and work for every member,\u201d he said in an interview with Swimming World<\/em>. \u201cTo be able to achieve excellence in our sport, we need the help and collaboration of everyone.\u201d<\/p>\n

[On The Record with Fernando Delgado, New President of the Puerto Rican Swimming Federation<\/em><\/a>]<\/p>\n

It will take more than a positive message to overcome what may be the most challenging stretch in the history of swimming on the island.<\/p>\n

Competitive swimming is not the only aquatic sport adversely impacted by aquatic facilities still unfinished and athletes unable to train due to COVID-19 restrictions. Delgado, a prot\u00e9g\u00e9 of Germ\u00e1n Rieckehoff<\/strong>, the highly regarded sports administrator who for years led the Puerto Rican Olympic Committee, is now also responsible for diving, open water swimming, synchronized swimming and water polo\u2014all of which have been furloughed by Covid.<\/p>\n

But events the past three years are not solely to blame for the FPN\u2019s sagging fortunes. Participation in youth swimming has declined precipitously over the past two decades, perhaps the new president\u2019s biggest challenge.<\/p>\n

It’s all about the facilities\u2014and the government that funds them<\/strong><\/p>\n

The lasting legacy of Maria is thousands of deaths and billions of dollars in property damage\u2014an impact still felt years after the hurricane swooped in. Diana Cintron<\/strong>, head swim coach for the Escuela del Deporte de Carolina team, waited three years for her home pool to reopen. And when it finally did, the virus struck.<\/p>\n

\u201cI haven\u2019t touched my own pool since 2017,\u201d Cintron said last weekend. \u201cI was going to start in March, [but] then Covid-19\u2026 we couldn\u2019t do it.\u201d<\/p>\n

Thus, one of Delgado\u2019s first actions as president will be fact-finding meetings with the island\u2019s 27 swim clubs. A critical question: what is the state of their pools?<\/p>\n

\"natatorium-PR-OCT20\"

The Natatorium in San Juan. Photo Courtesy: FPN<\/p><\/div>\n

He plans to work with politicians, administrators and pool operators to get aquatic athletes back in the water, ideally as soon as November. He will need to step up training; the CCCAN (Central American and Caribbean Amateur Swimming Confederation) Games are scheduled for June 2021.<\/p>\n

Key to Delgado\u2019s candidacy was outreach to the politicians that control the purse strings for facilities and various athletic organizations, which included a letter-writing campaign to the six candidates vying to be the next governor of Puerto Rico. Interestingly, that group does not include Wanda V\u00e1zquez<\/strong>, the current governor, who lost her party\u2019s nomination to Pedro Pierluisi<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

Delgado points out that refurbishing pools is not the only issue. The Natatorium in San Juan\u2014second only to the country\u2019s Olympic facility in Salinas\u2014remains closed because Carmen Yul\u00edn Cruz Soto<\/strong>, San Juan\u2019s mayor, won\u2019t open it.<\/p>\n

COVID-19 remains a critical issue. San Juan and its suburbs, home to many swim clubs, contains the island\u2019s highest concentration of coronavirus cases. Until the Department of Sports and Recreation and the Department of Health sign off, obstacles remain to resuming athletic activities\u2014even though swimming has been shown to prevent the spread of the virus.<\/p>\n

FPN member clubs must get government approval for training to resume. While swimming is currently allowed, it is limited to select facilities, and all other aquatic sports remain on hold.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe need permission for the rest of the disciplines, synchronized swimming, water polo and diving,\u201d Delgado said. \u201cBut, because of elections, we have to wait until after November 3 for who wins [the governor\u2019s seat], so that we\u2019re going to start that in January.\u201d<\/p>\n

Treat all water sports the same<\/strong><\/p>\n

A long-standing issue is that not all FPN disciplines coexist equally. Puerto Rico has had notable swimming success, with numerous Olympians\u2014including Sonia \u00c1lvarez<\/strong>, Carlos Berrocal<\/strong>, Ricardo Busquets<\/strong>, Fernando Canales<\/strong>, Rita Garay<\/strong>, Vanessa Garc\u00eda<\/strong>, Gretchen Gotay<\/strong>, Manuel Guzm\u00e1n<\/strong> and Miriam Sheehan<\/strong>\u2014among others. (Even though it is a U.S. territory, the island maintains its sports independence. Puerto Ricans get to compete under their own flag in international competition.)<\/p>\n

For Gotay, who represented Puerto Rico in the 2004 Athens Olympics, the biggest challenge is a lack of young athletes learning to swim. Her club, Streamline Swim Academy, has returned to practice, which Gotay knows is significant.<\/p>\n

\u201cRight now, with all the challenges\u2014not only swimming, [but what] all the sports are facing\u2026 we have a competitive advantage over other sports, because ours is an individual sport,\u201d she said. \u201cWe can start training\u2014other sports are not allowed yet to start.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"dejesus-UANA-JUN18\"

Manuel de Jesus and Milena Guzman in 2018. Photo Courtesy: Peter Laurence<\/p><\/div>\n

But not every aquatic sport has been cleared to return. Water polo, a contact sport, remains sidelined. The good news is that one of Delgado\u2019s chief advisors is Manuel de Jesus<\/strong>, chair of the Union Americana de Natacion (UANA) Technical Water Polo Committee (TWPC) and a long-time age group and national team coach.<\/p>\n

de Jesus, whose brother Jose, a swimming Olympian for Puerto Rico who is a past FPN president, speculated that Delgado will tackle one of the biggest criticisms of the federation\u2014that funding is not distributed equitably. In an email, de Jesus speculated that the FPN will become an “aquatics federation,\u201d meaning that every discipline will have fiscal and administrative autonomy. Canada and the U.S. structure their individual aquatic sports in a similar manner\u2014with funding allotted based on each discipline’s long-term plans and goals.<\/p>\n

Just get in the water and swim!<\/strong><\/p>\n

Oddly, for an island nation in the Caribbean, not enough Puerto Ricans swim, something Delgado hopes to remedy\u2014a change that would stem the long-term drain of young athletes to other sports, including basketball, baseball and soccer.<\/p>\n

\u201cFor years we have tried to educate the government that swimming should be an essential class; people would do more recreation in our natural bodies of water,\u201d he said. \u201cThis can potentially result in a rise of aquatic athletes and clubs.\u201d<\/p>\n

Cintron, the swim coach from Carolina, believes that under Toro, Delgado\u2019s immediate predecessor, swimming was growing again in Puerto Rico. Then came Covid.<\/p>\n

\u201cMorgan \u2014our ex-president\u2014did a great job,\u201d she said. \u201cNot only for swimming, but for administration, too. We had a situation, two hurricanes that came to Puerto Rico, and he worked on them. Then he had the pandemic.\u201d<\/p>\n

The new president has a fan in Cintron, who swam for Puerto Rico in the \u201870s and has remained in the sport since, coaching at a variety of levels.<\/p>\n

\"delgado-fpn-oct20\"

Fernando Delgado. Photo Courtesy: F. Delgado<\/p><\/div>\n

\u201c[W]hen Fernando finished [Saturday] he sent a message: he\u2019s not only for swimming,\u201d she said. \u201cHe going to work with the other disciplines. And he\u2019s going to concentrate on those kids at the smaller ages\u2014we can\u2019t forget about them.\u201d<\/p>\n

Gretchen Gotay believes the future of the FPN hinges on a leader who is creative\u2014especially when it comes to competition.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe need a leader focused on the motivation of the swimmers\u2014how we can keep the athletes in the water without the goal of a swimming meet,\u201d she said. \u201cUsually they\u2019re motivated because of competition.\u201d<\/p>\n

Delgado is already engaged in this effort. He\u2019s pursuing virtual competitions modeled on what USA Swimming has set up. He also understands that the pandemic is a global problem; the FPN is collaborating with its regional neighbors, and he\u2019s prepared to dig in as much as possible to overcome Covid-19.\u201d<\/p>\n

Said Delgado, \u201cWe have to work hard with the other clubs in order to bring back the swimmers. That\u2019s not only a Puerto Rican problem. This is a problem for the whole world: getting back the swimmers.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

One week ago, Fernando Delgado was elected to a four-year term as president of the Federaci\u00f3n Puertorrique\u00f1a de Nataci\u00f3n (FPN). It’s an auspicious moment to take over Puerto Rico\u2019s national<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4875,"featured_media":449070,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":false,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"dois","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[122077,17],"tags":[67624,125886,125883,59388,125880,121252,125878,125879,125788,56443,125784,59103,125781,125888,63889,125785,125889,11339,60192,125782,51288,125884,125882,52631,527,125887,125885,125890,142,2690,46519,125881],"class_list":["post-449066","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-americas","category-commentary","tag-2004-athens-olympics","tag-carlos-berrocal","tag-carmen-yulin-cruz-soto","tag-cccan","tag-central-american-and-caribbean-amateur-swimming-confederation","tag-covid-19","tag-diana-cintron","tag-escuela-del-deporte-de-carolina","tag-federacion-puertorriquena-de-natacion","tag-fernando-canales","tag-fernando-delgado","tag-fpn","tag-german-rieckehoff","tag-gretchen-gotay","tag-hurricane-maria","tag-karen-oyola","tag-manuel-de-jesus","tag-manuel-guzman","tag-michael-randazzo","tag-miguel-toro","tag-miriam-sheehan","tag-natatorium-in-san-juan","tag-pedro-pierluisi","tag-puerto-rican-olympic-committee","tag-ricardo-busquets","tag-rita-garay","tag-sonia-alvarez","tag-streamline-swim-academy","tag-swimming","tag-usa-swimming","tag-vanessa-garcia","tag-wanda-vazquez"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"yoast_head":"\r\nSpecial 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