Some moments stop a nation in its tracks. Not because of spectacle alone, but because they remind us of who we are.
January 28 has become one such date in Antigua and Barbuda’s living memory, a day when the sea itself seemed to deliver back courage, endurance, and collective pride, as Team Antigua Island Girls and Team Antigua Pairs completed journeys that stretched human limits and unified a nation.
The Island Girls: Firsts That Redefined Possibility
When Team Antigua Island Girls rowed into Nelson’s Dockyard on January 28, 2019, history arrived with them.
Kevinia Francis, Elvira Bell, Christal Clashing, and Samara Emmanuel became the first all-Black female team to row any ocean, ultimately completing crossings of both the Atlantic and the Pacific Oceans.
Their Atlantic crossing, part of the Talisker Whisky Atlantic Challenge, covered 3,000 nautical miles from La Gomera to Antigua in 47 days, 8 hours, and 25 minutes.
Notably, some team members carried their own historic distinction. Christal Clashing is Antigua and Barbuda’s youngest-ever Olympian, competing at just 14. Kevinia Francis is the nation’s first female Black Belt, while Samara Emmanuel became the first Antiguan woman certified as a Royal Yachting Association (RYA) Yacht Captain.
Together, they rowed not just for sport but for a purpose: to empower women and support girls in need.
Three members of the original crew would return to history once again on July 23, 2023, completing a 2,800-nautical-mile Pacific crossing from Monterey Bay, California, to Kauai, Hawaii, in 41 days, 7 hours, and 5 minutes, during the World’s Toughest Row – Pacific Edition.
In recognition of their impact, the team was awarded the Most Precious Order of Princely Heritage (Gold) at the 2024 National Honours, alongside several international accolades, including the Forerunner Award in Washington, D.C.
The Pairs: Grit, Family, and the Meaning of Home
Two years later, on January 28, 2021, the sea again delivered heroes.
Joseph “Jojo” Nunes and Travis Weste, known as Team Antigua Pairs, completed the same 3,000-nautical-mile Atlantic crossing in 47 days, 6 hours, and 57 minutes, becoming the first two-man team from Antigua and Barbuda to complete the challenge. Their time also stands as the second-fastest finish recorded by any Antigua and Barbuda team in the Atlantic campaigns.
Their journey unfolded in the shadow of a global pandemic. Strict COVID-19 protocols meant most of the nation witnessed their arrival online, but the emotion was no less real.
As their boat approached English Harbour, escorted by the Coast Guard, horns blared, smoke flared, flags waved, and families wept. For Weste and Nunes, the triumph was not only endurance; it was return.
Their row raised USD $10,305, donated to the Rotary Club of Antigua Sundown, which directed the funds toward supporting Antigua and Barbuda Search and Rescue (ABSAR) and sustaining community projects across the island.
On arrival, the pair spoke openly of fear, exhaustion, bad weather, whales, sharks, prayer, and resilience.
“The most important lesson,” Nunes reflected, “was learning how to turn a negative into a positive.”
One Sea, One People
What unites these two Time Capsules is not the race, the record, or even the distance, but the return: to family, to community, to a nation that sees itself reflected in perseverance.
On both January 28s, Antigua and Barbuda gathered, physically and virtually, to welcome back its own, reminded that greatness can come from ordinary people who choose to endure for something larger than themselves.
Time Capsule Reflection
From all-female pioneers to determined sons, from global firsts to deeply personal victories, these arrivals transformed sport into a shared national memory.
They showed us that the ocean does not separate us. It tests us. And then, if we are strong enough, it brings us home.
And when it does, a nation stands waiting.