The Tribune

By BRENT STUBBS

Senior Sports Reporter

bstubbs@tribunemedia.net

The Bahamas Olympic Committee is now in a three-man race for the post of president with secretary general Rommel 'Fish' Knowles moving up to challenge his incumbent Wellington Miller and former Bahamas Association of Athletic Associations president Mike Sands.

While Sands announced his intention to run over the weekend, Knowles said he was nominated to contest the top position as Miller said he welcomes any and all challengers when the election of officers takes place on Thursday night.

The elections for the new executive board for the next four years will be held during the BOC's annual general meeting that will be held in the Paul Farquharson Auditorium at the headquarters of the Royal Bahamas Police Force.

Knowles declined to go into any details about his decision to run, only to say that after he was nominated he accepted and will be ready to contest the elections.

What's interesting to note is that while Miller was nominated by the Bahamas Amateur Boxing Federation and Sands' nomination came from the Bahamas Swimming Federation, Miller, in his capacity as the president of the Bahamas Amateur Boxing Federation, nominated Knowles.

If not elected as president for the next four years, Rommel Knowles has also been re-nominated for the position of secretary general along with Dianne Miller, Tracy Halkitis and Derron Donaldson.

The nominees for assistant secretary general are IAAF council woman Pauline Davis, Catherine Ramsing Pierre, Omar Smith and Oria Wood.

The most highly contested position being contested is for the six vice presidents. The list consists of Mike Sands, Mario Bowleg, Stanley Mitchell, Anton Sealey, Algernon Cargill, Clarence Rolle, Joseph 'Joe Mo' Smith, Rosamunde Carey, Shane Albury, Robert Butler, Dorian Roach, Cora Hepburn, Ceron Rolle, Roy Colebrook and Eldece Clarke.

The only position that will not be contested is treasurer in which Darcy Rahming went in unopposed.

However, Derron Donaldson, Dianne Miller and Charlie 'Softly' Robins have all been nominated for the post of assistant treasurer.

Rommel Knowles said based on the list of nominations, the elections should be keenly contested.

"We're hoping that we can have a very peaceful and amicable elections," he said. "We don't want it to be like anything that happened at the last two elections."

During the last elections held in 2013, three incumbent members walked out, expressing their disgust with the manner in which presiding officer Fred Sturrup conducted the entire process.

It came on the heels of the previous elections in 2008 when Wellington Miller, a vice president at the time, upset his incumbent president Sir Arlington Butler, who passed away on Thursday night.

During those proceedings, the membership argued that the old regime had to go and they voted Butler out of office after he had served for 40 years as president. The elections, however, didn't go without incident.

"I think, because the Bahamas Olympic Committee is the most prestigious sporting body in the country, there will always be a lot of interest when the elections are held," Knowles said.

"But we're hoping that these elections are lot more peaceful than what we experienced the last two elections. We know that there is a lot of interest in the elections, but we hope that it is a smooth process."

It's not known who will conduct the elections.

The out-going board is comprised of the following: president - Wellington Miller; vice presidents - Roy Colebrooke, Iram Lewis, Cora Hepburn, Derron Donaldson, Joseph 'Joe Mo' Smith and Robert Butler; secretary general - Romell Knowles, assistant secretary general - Kathryn Dillette; treasurer - Darcy Rahming and assistant treasurer - Clarence Rolle.