Abigail Brewer is gearing up to represent Bermuda in hockey and squash at her first appearance at the Central American and Caribbean Games.

Brewer has been a national representative in squash for more than a decade, while her international hockey debut came last year, when the team secured qualification for the CAC Games.

The Bermudian played hockey and squash for Queen’s University in Ontario, where she won titles in both sports.

“Representing Bermuda on the international stage is always an incredible honour, but to be the first Bermudian to carry our flag across two different sports at the same CAC Games is humbling and historic,” Brewer told The Royal Gazette.

“I have competed internationally with the squash team since I was 11, while my journey with the field hockey national team started in 2024. I am excited for all the work that both teams have put in over the past year in preparation for the games.

“Balancing two distinct national-team training regimes has given me an immense amount of discipline, taught me the importance of organisation, time management and sacrifice.

“Countless early morning sessions before going to work, followed by evening training or even back-to-back sessions have required extreme physical exertion and improved my mental resilience significantly. I hope these lessons will transfer directly into key moments at the Games.”

Brewer was meant to be part of the team to face Barbados on Sunday, but family commitments meant that she will be only arriving in Santo Domingo earlier in the day. That should make the forward available for the matches against Jamaica on Tuesday, prior to taking on Cuba two days later.

When the hockey action concludes, the 23-year-old will switch her attention to squash from August 2 to 7.

“This is the first time the women’s squash team has qualified for the CAC Games, which is a huge success in itself,” she said.

“It is also my first time competing with the field hockey team at the CAC Games. It is a testament to the strength of Bermuda’s sports communities and I feel grateful to not have just one, but now two sports families to share this moment with.

“Community is at the heart of high-level sports and I feel like the sense of community is something truly special to Bermuda’s sports culture.

“I hope this experience shows younger Bermudian athletes who are struggling to “pick a lane” that, with dedication and hard work, you don’t have to limit your passions.

“I have been extremely lucky to have such incredible support around me. My coaches, management, team-mates and family do so much work behind the scenes that often goes unnoticed, and they are truly what fuelled me to keep pushing over this past year.

“I am proud to be a part of such a strong cohort of Bermudian athletes heading to the Games and I hope to make everyone watching from back home proud.”

Keeping up with demands of two sporting codes leading up to the Games has not been easy for the young athlete.

“It’s definitely been full on,” she said.

“For the past few months, my schedule has basically been training every single day, often twice a day.

“A typical day might start with an early morning session for one sport before heading into work, followed by an evening session for the other.

“It’s been intense but a massive benefit has been my overall fitness level, the cardio demands of hockey and the high-intensity agility of squash complement each other really well.

“Most importantly, it forced me to become hyper-aware of my recovery, prioritising sleep, nutrition and listening to my body.”

Having not competed at such a level before, Brewer is unsure of what lies ahead in both disciplines.

“Since this is my first CAC Games, I am not entirely sure what to expect in terms of the overall competition,” she added.

“I know the work we’ve put in and I’m excited to just give it our maximum effort. I am more familiar with the squash competitors.

“We have some big names to face, many of whom play on the professional circuit, which is why qualification in itself was such a huge milestone for us.

“I’m looking forward to seeing how we perform in the doubles event, it’s more unpredictable and requires a different skill set from singles, so it could potentially be an area where we cause a shake-up.

“ For field hockey, we have a clear goal in mind for how we want to perform in the pool stage. If we trust the training we’ve put in and stick to the game plan we’ve been refining, I’m confident we can execute on that goal.”