The Tribune

By BRENT STUBBS

Senior Sports Reporter

bstubbs@tribunemedia.net

THEY not only excelled in their specialties, but both Keianna Albury and Xavier Coakley showed their versatility in other events for the St Augustine’s College Big Red Machine at the Bahamas Association of Athletic Associations’ 2014 Scotiabank National High School Track and Field Championships two weeks ago.

For their performances, Scotiabank awarded the duo with the respective female and male Bright Future Most Outstanding Athlete awards. The presentations were made by Sean Albert, the managing director of Scotiabank. Also present were Bahamas Association of Athletic Associations (BAAA) president Mike Sands and meet co-directors Curt Hollingsworth and Drameco Archer.

The two athletes were accompanied by Dianne Woodside, who not only coached them at SAC, but also in the Club Monica Track Club.

Talking to the two athletes, both 17-year-old 11th graders, Albert said he was quite impressed with their commitments to excel as students - Albury as a physiologist and Coakley as an architectural engineer.

“I would say to you folks the world is ahead of you. Your future is really bright and we here at Scotiabank take pride in young people like yourself,” Albert said. “So keep dreaming and keep working. It is not going to be easy. Keep working and the goal will be yours.”

Albert said he hopes that one day he can see both Albury and Coakley excel as champions at CARIFTA and even the Olympic Games.

Accepting her award, Albury said she is very humbled to be “recognised as the most outstanding female athlete. I always go out there and do my best and at the Carifta Games and other games coming up, I’m going to put my best foot forward and achieve all my goals. I’m going to work hard and I’m going to get the goals that I set set out to achieve.”

In the under-20 girls’ division, Albury won the 100 metres in 11.82 seconds, the 200m in 23.81s, the long jump with a leap of 5.60 metres or 18-feet, 41/2-inches and the shot put with a heave of 11.86m or 38-11. She also ran the second leg on the Big Red Machine’s victorious 4 x 100m relay team (45.90) of Blayre Catalyn, Drashanae Rolle and Makeya White and second leg on their second place team of Catalyn, Gabriella Thompson and Rolle in the 4 x 400m relay (4:08.60).

Coakley, on the other hand, thanked God for blessing him with his talent, Woodside for enhancing it and more importantly, his parents for providing him with the opportunity to display his skills.

“I want to acknowledge Scotiabank for awarding me this most outstanding male athlete,” he said. “I know the work that we put in and as we go on, we will just keep focused and put our best foot forward and hope to make the Bahamas and our country proud.”

Coakley doubled up in the under-20 boys’ 110m hurdles (13.96) and 400m (54.16). He also surprised everybody when he leapt 6.95m or 22-93/4 for the long jump title.

Woodside, speaking on behalf of SAC’s administration, staff and the Big Red Machine track team, said it is an honour for her to coach athletes like Albury and Coakley because they are so unique and their qualities have surpassed the ordinary athletes.

“They are not only athletes, but they are student athletes,” she said. “They are very focused and dedicated to the sport and with the professions they have chosen, they are very focused on what they want to become in the future. Their qualities and their abilities will take them very far. They have already been to the World Youth Championships, but we look forward to seeing them compete at the CAC Games, the Pan American Games, the World Championships and the Olympic Games.”

Hollingsworth congratulated both athletes on their accomplishments and Woodside for the role she played in preparing them. “It is important for us to continue to work towards assisting these young people with the organisations that they are a part of,” Hollingsworth said.

He also thanked Scotiabank for investing in the athletes by sponsoring the meet and providing the trophy incentives that were presented to the athletes.

And Sands said it was a pleasure to have had the opportunity to watch the two athletes as they compete. But he was more impressed with the fact that they are also performing exceptionally well as student athletes. He said the future looks bright for both of them because they are two athletes who have demonstrated that they are eager to progress in the sport.