Laurent established national primacies. Andrea, a World Aquatics scholarship winner. Both with A marks for the Asunción 2025 Junior Pan American Games.

Laurent Estrada’s national firsts in the long and short pools and her and Andrea Becali’s assured places for the Asunción 2025 Pan American Junior Games were positive notes for Cuban swimming in the year that is ending.

In addition, the island once again earned invitations to the Olympic Games, allowing Rodolfo Falcón Junior and Andrea to be represented at Paris 2024. Andrea’s talent and prospects were also recognised with a scholarship to the centre operated by World Aquatics in Australia, which has been running since November.

After a 2023 in which he accompanied Becali, Lorena González and Elisbet Gámez in the 4×100 and 4×200 free relays, winners with national records and for the event at the Central American and Caribbean Games in San Salvador, in the season to come to an end Laurent has switched to backstroke, the style he prefers.

In May, he set a national record in the 100m during the first phase of the prestigious Mare Nostrum circuit, clocking 1:03.33 minutes in Canet, France. She erased the previous record of 1:03.70, held by Andrea since 2022.

On 10 December, one day before her 21st birthday, the Villaclareña gave herself another record in the hectometre, but in a 25-metre pool, on the occasion of the Short Course World Championships in Budapest: 1:00.74 minutes, which left behind the 1:01.25 achieved by Andrea herself in the Abu Dhabi 2021 edition.

At the end of the event, Laurent approached the national record – also Andrea’s – in the 200m (2:12.01) by setting her personal best at 2:12.78. These are not times to flirt with the elite, but they are evidence of progress.

The capital’s Andrea, the first figure of the national team, did not have her best season, but she achieved technical bests of 729 and 771 units in 100 and 200 metres freestyle, in that order, according to the 1,000-point table that establishes comparisons with world records.

«It was a very difficult year, after a strong 2023, when they all swam very well,» coach Luisa María Mojarrieta told JIT, who was without Lorena González and Elisbet Gámez, for many years a leader in the sport, who retired after failing to meet her expectations at the world training centre in France.

The renowned coach recalled that she worked practically with Andrea and Laurent for 2024, as Falcón Junior was alone until the Olympic Games and had to continue his university studies, and Vladimir Hernández did not train for a long time and could not join in, due to health problems, until weeks before the short course world championships.

«In the end there were three of them at that event, but we didn’t have stability as a team, and that’s something that shouldn’t fail, because without a doubt it helps the results to multiply, as they help each other. However, I think we always try,» he said.

«We lack continuity, but as a coach I recognise the support we had to do one training camp in Santo Domingo and two others in the French city of Villejuif. It’s not always about physical condition, it’s also about mental condition,» he added.

«Laurent swam very well this year, she took her chance and was the only one to set several records. He has progressed in his level, now more independent, and although he still has a lot of work to do, he has the merit of persevering in conditions that are not very favourable today,» he said.

About Andrea, he emphasised that he is confident in her technical-athletic ability and her conditions. «She has plenty of possibilities to continue advancing, but she had a pause in her performance and was not able to motivate herself despite her efforts, because not everyone reacts the same way. He has adapted to the centre in Australia and should achieve much better results».

«In 2025 we will have the Asunción Games in August, and a year later the Central American and Caribbean Games in Santo Domingo. We trust in the support of the Olympic Committee and World Aquatics so that Laurent can also benefit from a scholarship and later think about a place to develop the men,» he said.

In the midst of many limitations, it is worth highlighting the work of the coaches at the base, who made every effort to sustain the work that allowed them to bring together their most outstanding students in the National School Games, held in the capital.

In the hope that this seedbed will help new talent to germinate, it is well worth reviewing in depth what each territory can do to contribute more to a sport that needs it.