The Tribune

By BRENT STUBBS

Senior Sports Reporter

bstubbs@tribunemedia.net

Sir Arlington Butler’s only regret was the fact that his deceased wife, Sheila, was not present to help him receive the long-awaited award recognition from the Bahamas Olympic Committee.

After serving as president for almost 40 years, Butler was hosted to a gala awards reception Friday night at Government House where he was presented with the International Olympic Committee’s Pierre de Coubertin and BOC’s president awards.

Both awards were presented to a Bahamian for the first time. The IOC’s award was the first time also presented to anybody in the region in recognition of their initial president, Baron Pierre de Coubertin.

“The night was immeasurable. It was remarkable because I expected something to happen, but I didn’t expect anything as elaborate as this,” he said. “It’s unbelievable and I found out that my collegiate in the Caribbean were appreciative of what I did over the years.”

But the 75-year-old Butler, who was not as robust as he was when he served for almost 40 years, walking slowly with a cane, said he missed not having his wife on his side to share the moment of receiving the eponymous awards.

“I travelled with my wife from 1967 and she was a special weapon I had. People got to like her, they got close to her. Wherever she went, she was special,” he said. “I’m just thankful that I can enjoy what has happened and appreciate what has been done.

“I’m disappointed that she was not here to share in it, but she was so special that I know that she is right here by my side even though she is not here in person.”

Dignitaries from home and abroad showed up to show their gratitude to Butler, known as a “man for all seasons” as a student and athlete, a teacher, a cricketer, a lawyer, a politician, a loyal and faithful husband, a cherished father and grandfather, a member of parliament, a speaker of the House of Assembly, a president of both the Bahamas Association of Athletic Associations and the Bahamas Olympic Committee and an ambassador for the country.

Leading the way was Governor General Sir Arthur Foulkes, who said that heroes are honoured to express gratitude to them and to use their lives, their achievements to inspire succeeding generations to continue the work of perfecting the country and the world.

“When Arlington Butler took over the reigns of the BOA, the Bahamas had to its credit one gold medal, won in sailing by Sir Durward Knowles and Cecil Cooke in the 1964 Tokyo Games and a bronze medal, also in sailing by Sir Durward and Sloan Farrington in 1956,” Foulkes said.

“When Sir Arli stepped down in 2008, the Bahamas had golden girls, silver knights and bronze warriors in track and field. The beachhead established by Sir Durward had been wonderfully expanded and secured.”

During his 36 years in office, Foulkes said Butler became so synonymous with the BOA that when you talked about the organisation, you couldn’t help but mention his name and if you talked about Butler, the topic was certain to be around the BOA, among other things like, maybe, politics.

Prime Minister Perry Christie concurred, taking it a step further when he noted that there is no figure in the Bahamas who is more internationally identified with the development of the Olympic movement in the Bahamas than Sir Arlington Butler. He added that Butler’s international stature in this regard is truly iconic.

“But should that not be surprising to any of us. After all, Sir Arlington served as president of the Bahamas Olympic Committee, and as our nation’s chief ambassador to the international sporting world, for a remarkably long period of time,” said Christie, who competed during the era of Butler’s presidency.

“He was ‘Mr Olympics.’ When you thought about the Bahamas in the context of the Olympics, you could not help but focus on Sir Arlington Butler and his magnificent contributions to the development of the Olympic movement here in The Bahamas and in the wider region as well.

“Indeed, it has been truly said of him that his very name is synonymous with Bahamian involvement in the Olympics in the modern era. He really put us on the map with the IOC. He was a major contributing factor to the development of the sporting prowess of The Bahamas, especially track and field competition at the Olympic level,” he added.

Wellington Miller, who worked with and then succeeded Butler as president, said Butler was the Bahamas’ own answer to Baron de Coubertin as an early and transformative leader of the Olympic Movement in The Bahamas.

Having served under him for four years as a vice president, Miller said Butler helped to groom him to take over as the new president. “I remember in particular during the trip from Nassau to the 1988 Olympic Games in Seoul, (South) Korea,” he said.

“As we were boarding the flight, the flight attendant was asking each person as they entered the plane, what sport they were taking part in. When she got to Sir Arlington, she asked the same question. Sir Arlington replied: ‘Gymnastics!’ The flight attendant was taken aback, because she knew gymnastics athletes to be basically small people, slight in height and weight. She asked another flight attendant if this was really true? Could a person of his size really win a medal on the trampoline?”

Miller said the truth is, of course, that as leader of the Olympic Movement in the Bahamas, Sir Arlington was responsible for all Olympic sports and athletes, gymnastics included.

“We in the Bahamas Olympic Committee thought it was very fitting to have this ceremony to honour Sir Arlington Butler for his wide involvement in sports and his long and unselfish service as president of the Bahamas Olympic Association, now committee,” he said.

“Sir Arlington has spent over 50 years in the service and administration of sports in the Bahamas. Sir Arlington, respect is shown here tonight by the number of Olympic presidents and secretaries general who have come here to be part of this celebration and the amount of congratulations we have received from sporting dignitaries around the world who send their best wishes and admiration for your work and contributions.”

Sir Arlington, according to Miller, was also instrumental in changing the name from the old British Empire Games to the Commonwealth Games. In fact, it was Butler who made that motion at the Commonwealth Games meeting when that change was made.

“So, Sir Arlington, on behalf of the Olympic Movement in the Bahamas, the Olympic Committee and all the sporting federations, associations and regional and international sporting leaders who have sent their best wishes, I say thank you very much, Sir, for preparing the road for us.”

Fortuna Belrose, president of St Lucia Olympic Committee, talked about how Butler was able to influence many persons like herself, who were just getting started in the Olympic movement. She said he was a fine example to emulate.

And Keith Joseph, the vice president of the Pan American Sports Organisation (PASO), of which Butler served as a former member, said in his capacity as president of St Vincent and the Grenadines Olympic Committee, he was thrilled to have seen Butler in action.

In fact, he gave a highly spirited rendition of how Butler performed at their international meetings, taking his time to stand and delivering speeches or making remarks on behalf of the region.

Mike Finell, immediate past president of the Commonwealth Games Federation (CGF) and president of the Jamaica Olympic Committee, said he would not have missed this opportunity to be here for anything else in the world.

“He was a person who contributed leadership to the movement in the Bahamas, the wider region and indeed the world,” Finell said. “We’re always complaining of the lack of leadership in whatever we do, not just in sports, but he provided very positive leadership that was recognised all over the world.

“The other thing we must recognise is that he has been a friend to all of us in the Caribbean. We know him very well and we must all recognise the importance as administrators in recognising our athletes for their success. When our athletes receive success that success would not have been possible without good leadership and that is what Sir Arlington has been to the Olympic movement.”

After a cordial welcome was given by secretary general Romell Knowles, several other speakers gave tributes, including Bahamas Association of Athletic Associations (BAAA) president Mike Sands, photographer Stanley Mitchell, his son, Arlington Jr and Bernadette Christie, wife of Prime Minister Christie, who publicly thanked Butler for his assistance during her college days.

As one of the athletes who benefitted from Butler’s tenure in office, former swimmer turned journalist Nikia Deveaux said she would have liked to have shared some of her fond memories with the audience if she was given the opportunity.

“I thought it was very powerful. I was talking to someone in the Bahamas Swimming Federation and I said we forget all of the contributions and the struggles that he made for us in the Bahamas and even in the Caribbean,” she said. “I think it was very moving, very motivating. I try in my everyday life to strive to be a lot more like him.”

Deveaux said she remembers specifically when she competed at the Pan American Games in 2007 in Brazil as a member of the women’s 4 x 100 medley relay team - Arianna Vanderpool-Wallace, Alana Dillette and Alicia Lightbourne - when they just missed out on the bronze medal.

“I was the anchor leg and I touched the wall just behind the third place team. For me it was very disappointing because we all swum our personal best and we wanted a medal,” she said. “I remember when Sir Arlington came to the warm down pool with the biggest smile on his face and he congratulated us as if we had won the gold medal.

“After all of the medals that he’s seen won as the Olympic president, he still came to us and treated us as if we had won the gold medal at the Pan Am Games. That was a testament of the man he was in general and in sports.”

In addition to receiving the two outstanding awards, Butler was presented with a number of gifts from the various sporting bodies within the BOA and the region of which he was affiliated.