Gabriela destined to make a big splash

At the end of the fourday meet, Gabriela Donahue had medalled in each of the 15 events she entered — raking in nine gold, five silver and one bronze– indisputably an outstanding performance from a little- known aspiring athlete whose roots straddle the North Atlantic Ocean.

The offspring of two swimmers, the timeworn saying, “the fruit doesn’t fall far from the tree,” best describes the South Florida native.

Gabriela is the youngest child of Brian and Karen Donahue. Her dad is a former Princeton University water polo and swimming captain while her mom is the former TT swimmer Karen Dieffenthaller, who at the pinnacle of her career competed at the 1988 Olympic Games in Seoul.

Gabriela is the youngest in a Florida- based sporting dynasty that made her chosen sport almost inevitable.

“My older sister Emma plays water polo at USF,” Gabriela explained.

“My second sister Ally swims for Brown University, my third sister Caroline swims for GTS A and Plant High School in Tampa and my brother TJ is a lacrosse and water polo goalie.” Gabriela is not the first of her generation to compete in TT ; indeed, her sister “Ally” (Alexandria) still holds the national record in the 100m Breaststroke.

Now 13, the youngest of the Donahue clan also dabbles in water polo “to stay fresh;” but swimming is her focus, as evidenced by her demanding schedule.

“During school days, my routine is either in the pool with coach Ryan or land-based with [Olympic Gold Medallist] Brooke Bennett and Raphael Ruiz, who trains Ryan Lochte and other USA Olympians,” she explained, adding that it consists of two hours of in-thepool training on weekdays and Saturdays in South Tampa.

“Our dryland workouts are at The Prep in South Tampa, Mondays and Wednesdays (one hour) which gives us enough time to drive down to the pool to begin swimming.

“I like the dryland - it works on explosive movements, range of motion, and emphasises perfect technique to transfer to my swimming strokes.” Gabriela prefers the shorter distances (50 and 100m) and lists the Back and Breast strokes as her favourites. “The Fly is too much work,” she told Newsday, adding mischievously, “Anyone can do Free, including my dad.” Now 13, Gabriela is hoping to be among the TT contingent at the CARIFTA and Caribbean Islands Swimming Championships this year.

“I plan to be there, but it is a few months away and much can happen,” was her cautious reply. “Everyone knows how expensive it is to get to some of the islands like Martinique, especially from Tampa.

My fingers are crossed.”