The Tribune

By BRENT STUBBS

Senior Sports Reporter

bstubbs@tribunemedia.net

AFTER winning first, second and third place respectively, the CV Bethel Stingrays, St Anne’s Bluewaves and the Queen’s College Comets were awarded by Scotiabank for their performances in the 2014 Marathon Bahamas Students Relay Run.

On Wednesday, Scotiabank hosted the trophy presentation to the teams in their courtyard terrace. On hand to congratulate the teams were Michelle Wilson, who represented Sunshine Insurance, the organisers of the marathon weekend January 17-19.

“The event was a resounding success and you young men are certainly a testament of your dedication and commitment to the discipline of running,” she said. “We encourage you to continue that discipline in all of your academic endeavours and we hope that you will be a motivator to your fellow classmates and encourage them to participate in this event going forward.”

As the organiser of the relay run for Marathon Bahamas, Trevor Strachan threw out a challenge to Leah Davis, senior manager of products, marketing and public relations at Scotiabank Bahamas Limited, to include a female segment next year so that the event can continue to grow.

Accepting the challenge, Davis said it’s something that is doable, but they want to recognise and show their appreciation to the young men, who led their teams to victory this year.

“I want to congratulate the winners of the student run Marathon Bahamas relay competition,” she said. “Scotiabank is a gold sponsor of Marathon Bahamas. This is the second year that we are the lead sponsor for the student relay run.

“We are committed to working ever closer (with Trevor Strachan) in making the event bigger and better and of course we would love to see some girls out there too.”

Presenting the winners with their trophies, Davis said the athletes should know that their performances were inspiring to those persons who were on the sidelines watching, especially those who are fighting cancer, which was highlighted throughout the weekend.

“We will remain committed to this event and it’s good to have you here,” she said. “We will remain open to ideas on how we can continue to grow this event.”

CV Bethel, coached by John Mills, comprised of Dominic McPhee, Jefferson Oliver, Samuel Moncur and Dericko Hinsey.

Oliver, who represented his team, said this was their second time running and they were thrilled with their performance.

“The marathon was a great experience,” said the 11th grader. “I had a lot of confidence in my teammates and I anticipated that we would have gotten the baton in first and we did and we proceeded to victory and we took the whole thing.”

St Anne’s comprised of Dominic Lightbourne, Charles Smith, Barry Smith and Reagan Cartwright.

Smith, speaking on behalf of his team, said the marathon was a great inspiration for their school.

“We did a good job. It was a very good teaching moment for us,” said the 12th grader. “As I passed the baton to my teammates, I hoped they all achieved their goals.”

Third place Queen’s College, coached by Garry Markham, comprised of Jaime Thompson, Rory McCarroll, Meshach Roberts and Darren Young.

“The marathon was a really good experience,” said Roberts, an 11th grader who competed for the first time. “It was just really great to be able to represent my team and my school. I think we did a very good job.”

Strachan, the proprietor of the Windshield House and Parts Locator, said he got involved in organising the relay run because as a former distance runner, he was afforded an athletic scholarship to attend college and it is his goal to assist as many others to follow in his footsteps.

“Remember what the word is scholarship, so you need to be a scholar first to jump on the ship,” he said. “So we need to make sure we take care of our grades and do the right thing academically.”

Scotiabank treated the recipients to light refreshments before they returned to school.