The Tribune

By BRENT STUBBS

Senior Sports Reporter

bstubbs@tribunemedia.net

IT’S still a year away, but the momentum is starting to build for the hosting of the sixth edition of the Commonwealth Youth Games.

Last week, the Local Organising Committee of the Commonwealth Games Association, along with the Ministry of Youth, Sports and Culture and the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology held a press conference to update the plans for the biggest multi-sporting event to be hosted in the Bahamas.

During the press conference, the CGA’s LOC unveiled the logo to be used for the event, scheduled for July 10-23, 2017 as well as held its official flag-raising ceremony. The press conference was topped off with the drinking of substitute coconut water out of the quaich to celebrate the moment.

A quaich is a special kind of two-handed drinking cup or bowl used in Scotland to drink whiskey or brandy to celebrate an occasion. Wooden commemorative quaichs, designed by Scottish Paul Hodgkiss, were given as presents to the winners of the 2014 Commonwealth Games in Glasgow.

Logistics of the 2017 CYG

Grafton Ifill, the deputy managing director for the CGA’s LOC, set the tone for the audience that included members of the various sporting disciplines that will be contested during the games and some students from both the primary and secondary high schools.

The Bahamas made its official bid for the games in November, 2015 to the CGA, but the LOC didn’t make the presentation until mid-January, 2016 here in New Providence. On January 29, 2016, the Bahamas was awarded the bid at the Commonwealth Games Federation meeting in Gibraltar.

Making up the CGA’s LOC, formed in February, 2016, are Wellington Miller, CGA chairman; Romell Knowles, chief executive officer and they will be assisted by Drumeco Archer, Director of Sports Timothy Munnings, Lynden Maycock and Ifill will as Deputy Directors.

According to Ifill, more than 1,000 athletes between the ages of 14-18 years from 71 Commonwealth countries will be coming to the Bahamas to compete in nine sporting disciplines, inclusive of athletics, swimming, rugby sevens, cycling, judo, boxing tennis, beach volleyball and beach soccer.

Ifill said they are just waiting on the final approval from the Commonwealth Games Association’s executive board, headed by , and the confirmation from the various international sporting bodies to complete the total package for the games.

In the meantime, he revealed that the LOC have identified the following venues for the games: athletics – Thomas A. Robinson National Stadium; swimming – Betty Kelly Kenning Swim Complex; judo – Kendal Isaacs Gymnasium; cycling – on the streets of New Providence; tennis – National Tennis Center; boxing – Kendal Isaacs Gymnasium; rugby sevens – on green space being developed in the Queen Elizabeth Sports Center and beach soccer and beach volleyball – at the Bahamas Football Association’s facilities next to the Sir Sydney Poitier Bridge.

Breezes SuperClub will serve as the Games Village for the athletes; the Atlantis on Paradise Island will host the Commonwealth Games Federation’s family and the Melia Hotel will accommodate any additional needs.

“The IAAF World Relays is known as a single sporting discipline. The Commonwealth Games is regarded as a multi-event,” said Ifill, in making some distinctions. “The World Relays catered to senior athletes. The Commonwealth Youth Games will be catering to the best athletes within the Commonwealth.”

Facilities Ready

Lynden Maycock, the Managing Director of the National Sports Authority, said there’s no doubt that the Bahamas have the finest facilities throughout the Caribbean region with a full service operation that works directly with the national associations and federations, international bodies and promoters to ensure that their events are staged in a high class manner.

“We are proud and Bahamian,” said Maycock of the facilities in the Queen Elizabeth Sports Center where the bulk of the activities for the games will take place. “It is our intentions to ensure that all of the sporting facilities that fall under the NSA meet all of the international requirements for the hosting of major national and international sporting events.”

Who’s Next?

Archer said with the two word phrase - Who’s Next - as the hallmark for the CGA’s LOC.

“The message that we are unveiling here is What’s Next? Who’s Next?,” he asked. “I think that speaks to the essence of who we are. We are appealing to young people, our future leaders. So Who’s Next?”

With the majority of the senior athletes starting to depart the sporting arena, Archer said they have to start preparing the next generation and the CYG will do just that as they identify the athletes will take up the mantel and represent the Bahamas at the games.

Relationships Developed

In preparing to host the games, Romell Knowles said they have forged a good working relationship with the CGF and the government of the Bahamas.

“I want to say thanks to (Minister of Youth, Sports and Culture) Dr Daniel Johnson and I want to say this with all sincerity. Had it not been for Dr Johnson, these games would not have landed in the Bahamas,” Knowles stressed.

“When we first approached the Minister about landing these games, he was very enthusiastic and even though we just less than a month to respond to the CGF. We needed the approval of the Prime Minister (Perry Christie) and when first met with him, Dr Johnson took him aside and I don’t know what he told him, but the rest was history.”

When the CGF came to town, Knowles said the Prime Minister put on the “show” of his life and was able to sell the Bahamas and he gave the assurance that the games will be the best ever held.

Knowles drew an illustration as he told the story of how at age 13, someone say that he would never amount to anything in life, but he defied the odd and became the youngest president of the Bahamas Softball Federation, a vice president of the International Softball Federation, an inductee into the ISF and now the secretary general of the Bahamas Olympic Committee.

He drew the illustration to bring home the point of what the “power of sports” can do in the life of young people in the country, if they don’t take advantage of sports and what it has to offer. He also asked the question: “Who’s Next?”

CGA is prepared for the Challenge

Ask Wellington Miller and he will be the first to let you know that the CGA’s LOC is all set to host the Commonwealth next year.

“This is a history making games for us, the first time a multi youth sporting games is being hosted in the Bahamas,” he said. “This will have the largest contingent of athletes and the largest contingent of games that will be played. Everybody wants to come to the Bahamas. We have to protect this brand.

“We will have the largest press core coming to the Bahamas from the 71 Commonwealth countries.  This is going to be very, very great for our country. This sixth Commonwealth Games will put the Bahamas on the map and we will be in the history books for the manner in which we will host the games.”

Miller, however, gave a lot of credit to the government of the Bahamas for their endorsement and noted that without their support, it would not have been possible to obtain the rights to host the games from the CGF.

Ministry of Education fully on board

Representing Minister of Education, Science and Technology, Jerome Fritzgerald, Evon Wisdom, the Sports Director in the Ministry, highlighted the students present as he brought them to the front to stand with him as he made his comments, saying that the games is all about them.

“It’s not too often that the department of Education finds a common cause with the sporting community of the Bahamas,” Wisdom said. “While it is common knowledge that the same well stream that gives drive to our sporting excellence, it can also assist in the academic excellence. The Commonwealth youth Games is an event that takes sports and academics to the next level.”

Wisdom said they are looking forward to the hosting of the outstanding games and will be providing their full assistance to the games secretariat.

Ministry of Sports endorsement

Dr Daniel Johnson, Minister of Youth, Sports and Culture, said he’s a living proof of what can be achieved through the involvement of the Commonwealth, as he able to secure a scholarship and gone on to obtain five college degrees.

“The Commonwealth works,” he insisted.

He said the Bahamas government has fully endorses the games, which has adopted an excellent theme in “Who’s Next?”

“We are engaged now in a global conversation and what we have done here with this facility that we have here, with these bright minds that we have gathered, I tell you that we have gathered the beast of the best in sports administration in the region.”

Johnson said the Bahamas is still riding high on the claim by the first Minister of Sports, Kendal Nottage, who at the time dubbed the country “numero uno,” which does not just equates to being first on the field, first to be drafted or winning the games, but rather always ready to turn up to play and being the best that the Bahamas can be.

Having added sports to the Bahamas logo of sun, sand and sea, Johnson said four years ago when he took over as the Minister of Sports, he wanted to take the Bahamas to the level and now that the country has risen to the occasion, he too can ask the question: “What’s next?”

“Next year when the world casts it eyes on the Bahamas, we will become the first Smart Island in the world,” he said. “The world is saying that because of our size, we can’t do this and we can’t do that. We are now going to take our size and show that the world that no one can do these events better than us.”

He said people will find out that “It’s better in the Bahamas,” and the Commonwealth Youth Games will be the continuation of more global events to come to the Bahamas as they show the quality of what can be done, following the hosting of the IAAF World Relays, the upcoming FIFA World Cup of Beach Soccer and the World Cup of Flag Football.

“The Bahamas is the gateway to the world,” Johnson stressed. “It’s a moment in history that will never change. We have to take advantage of it. When people come to a sporting event, they are coming to see who we are as a people. That is what Team Bahamas is all about. It’s about showing the world who we are and why.”