Andrew Smilley Shows his Spirit
Through more than 20 years of hard work and dedication, Andrew Nijel Smilley, has broken down barriers, paving the way for other swimmers with intellectual disabilities while raising awareness in the Cayman Islands and around the globe.
Andrew was born with an intellectual disability and was placed in foster care at a young age. At the age of 8, with the encouragement of Coach Penny McDowall, Andrew began training in the Special Olympics Cayman Islands swim program. From the start, he showed great dedication in the pool and before long was training two hours a day, five days per week, getting up at 5 a.m. to catch a ride with Coach Penny to train before school.
His achievements in and out of the pool are many. He has represented the Cayman Islands in five World Games, earning medals in the pool, open water and most recently on the basketball court. In 2009, Andrew earned the honor of “Greatest Open Water Swim of the Year” for his performance at the RCP Tiburon Mile Swim held in San Francisco Bay. He placed 107th in a field of 800, and was third in his division.
His next milestone was reached in 2011 at Special Olympics World Games in Athens, Greece where he won the first ever Special Olympics World Games Open Water Swim, a 1.5 kilometre race in Marathon Bay of the Aegean Sea. Smilley led the field of 35 athletes from 19 countries finishing in a time of 22:00.77. He is considered a pioneer for Open Water in the Special Olympics sport.
Out of the water, Andrew completed the Special Olympics Athlete Leadership program and joined the Board of Directors for Special Olympics Cayman Islands where he represents fellow athletes attending regular board meetings.
In 2015, Andrew was featured by ESPN in the lead up to the Special Olympics World Games in Los Angeles, where he went on to win silver in the Open Water event. He was also one of five athletes chosen to lead the Athletes’ Oath during the Opening Ceremony in the Los Angeles Coliseum.
While he became known for his abilities in the water, Andrew has a love for many sports and plays football and basketball. In 2015, he turned his focus to basketball and started training with the Special Olympics Cayman Islands Unified basketball team. In February of 2019, he was one of 12 Special Olympics athletes from around the globe selected to take part in the NBA Cares Special Olympics Unified Game as part of the NBA All Star weekend 2019. He has just returned from the World Games in Abu Dhabi where he was part of the gold medal-winning Unified basketball team from Cayman Islands, notable as Andrew has won World Games Gold in two completely different disciplines.
Upon his return to the Cayman Islands after World Games, Andrew was awarded a Certificate and Badge of Honour from HRH Prince Charles during a special investiture service. Their Royal Highnesses The Prince of Wales and Dutchess of Cornwall visited the Cayman Islands as part of a whirlwind tour of the Caribbean. Andrew Smilley was one of two Caymanians who received the distinguished award. He was recognized for services to sport in the Cayman Islands.
On and off the playing field, he is a shining example of hard work, sportsmanship and dedication to his sport and fellow athletes. His gentle spirit shows the world what people can do no matter their circumstances.
