The Tribune

WHAT really happened with Team Bahamas and the men’s 4 x 400 metre relay team not competing at the IAAF World Relays, held in Yokohama, Japan, from May 11-12?

The Tribune was provided with a copy of team manager Dawn Johnson’s report, which outlined her position.

Here’s her report in its entirety:

“The travel plans for the 2019 world relays was late due to the fact that there were delays in the selection of the team. Five tickets for the management team were purchased well ahead which was a tremendous cost savings for the Federation.

“I along with Beverley White were constantly rebooking tickets because no definite decision was made on the names of the team members. Cheques were finally made available on the 29th of April 2019 for team tickets and other expenses.

“After receiving the printouts of tickets from Ms White, they were sent to all the athletes who were asked to WhatsApp me when they received the information. All athletes confirmed. In addition, I booked hotel rooms for the team with the exception of Ojay Ferguson for the night of the fifth due to the long layover.

“On April 26th 2019, athletes were asked by Dr Bazard in the WhatsApp group if they had any injuries and to let him know of any medication they were taking. Athletes did not respond so it was assumed that everyone was healthy and ready to perform.

“Please note that arrangements for Steven Gardiner was made separately. He travelled with coach Gary Evans who was accredited under Team Bahamas. The agreement was that Mr Gardiner would be reimbursed for his travels with comparable tickets of the other athletes travelling. His agent was to pay for the extra night, travel from the airport to the village and also the living expenses of coach Evans for the remaining six nights.

“By the evening of the 7th of May 2019, Team Bahamas was settled into the Shin Yokohama Fuji View Hotel in Yokohama, Japan. Uniforms for the remaining members of the team (uniforms were also distributed for the Penn Relays) were distributed.

“That evening at the dinner table it was announced by the relay coordinator, Mr Rupert Gardiner that practice was the next morning. I must also make mention that the athletes were in good spirits and communicating with each other which made me very optimistic.

“After breakfast on the 8th, the entire Team Bahamas boarded the bus for practice. There was no relay exchanges done at this time. Rupert Gardiner informed the group that relay practice would take place the following day which would be Thursday the 9th. Athletes again, were in high spirits and did their workout. There was no communication to me in regards to any injuries or concerns.

“Team Bahamas caught the bus to the Prince Hotel (LOC hotel) after practice for accreditation. This process went smoothly except for the fact that I could not get accredited until I paid for Team Bahamas. Total amount paid to the LOC was $15,400. There was a reimbursement of $6,080.00 for tickets (reimbursement was $1,520 per ticket for four athletes).

“On the evening of the 8th, I asked Mr Rupert Gardiner the time for practice the next morning. He announced that practice will be at 2:30pm.

“Again all members attended practice. Rupert worked with four athletes for the 4x400m relay while coach Evans and Ferguson worked with six athletes for the 4x200. Again no concerns were announced to me at this time. Practice was held at the practice/warm-up track.

“When we arrived back at the hotel I went to the CID desk and saw that the competition stadium would be open on the 10th from 10:30am to 12 noon. I informed the relay coordinator about the stadium availability and was informed that there would be no practice on the 10th which was that Friday. I asked why because my belief was that our athletes should see and feel the actual track that they would be competing on. He said that there would be no practice. I then proceeded to speak with the team captain, Alonzo Russell and I informed him of the opening and advised him to take the team down to the stadium to look at the exchange zones for the 4x200.

“Friday morning, the relay coordinator announced the persons who will be running the relays. (Alonzo, Ojay, Andre and Steven G for the 4x400 and Teray, Anthony, Shavez and Cliff for the 4x200). I then expressed concerns about the athletes not having practice in the stadium and again I was informed that there would be no practice. Plans were made however to go down to the stadium. We arrived at the stadium and all teams were in training with the exception of the Bahamas. I was not happy. The members of the 4x200 did however go into the stadium and looked at the zones.

“President Archer along with Mike Sands and the representative from ZNS visited our hotel around lunch time and had a meeting with the athletes. Interviews were also done after lunch. Again, athletes were asked if they had any concerns and there was none. Let me also note that at that time Mike and I was on the search for a Bahamian flag but found out that we didn’t need one. Flags were available at the finish line.

“On the morning of the 11th which was competition day, I was informed that the athletes were going to the track for a shake out. Apparently that evening, I was informed that six of the 10 athletes had a full work-out that morning and that Teray Smith received an injury. Again this was not told to me until that evening.

“It was announced that the team should be on the 2:30 bus to head down to the stadium. Coach Gardiner, Evans and Ferguson, Mike Armbrister, Ojay, Steven G, Stephen N, Alonzo and Andre along with myself caught the bus. Visibly absent was Dr Bazard.

“The athletes (Ojay, Alonzo, Andre and Steven G) began their preparation for the 4x400m relay. Again no concerns were raised at the time of arrival. However, minutes to six I observed Steven Gardiner having a conversation with coach Evans and rubbing the back of his ankle. I went up to them and asked what the problem was. Steven said that he was having problems with his Achilles. I asked if he could run and he said that he doesn’t want it to get worse. By that time the other coaches were present and coach Evans proceeded to dial Steven’s agent. I then knew that we were in trouble.

“Coach Gardiner then turned to Stephen Newbold and asked him to ready himself. Stephen N announced that he had a full workout that morning and iced two times and there was no way he could run. He also said that he was not informed that he should ready himself to run before that time. If he knew, he would have not done the workout or iced. Please note at this time however that it would have been too late to even substitute Steven G due to the declaration being submitted hours before and the time to make changes had expired. I then asked about Teray who came on the 3:30/4:30 bus and was present at the time.

“I was informed that he got injured at practice that morning. I then proceeded to call Dr Bazard and asked him why he was not at the track because we were having a crisis. He informed me that he was still at the hotel and was planning to catch the 6:30. When he arrived he gave his apologies and said that he had to take a taxi to the stadium.

“I also called President Archer to appraise him of the situation. When he arrived he held a brief meeting with the coaches and medical personnel. He was visibly upset and asked for a report to be done of what took place by that evening.

“During this time however, there was simply no one prepared to be a substitute because of the practice that they had that morning.

“A brief report was done by Dr Bazard on the condition of Mr Gardiner. I also produced a report with the input of the coaches concerning the incident on Saturday. Mr Archer was then able to give a formal statement to the ZNS reporter which was published on social media and the various media houses.

“On Sunday the 12th, President Archer visited the hotel and requested a meeting with the team. Absent were Steven Gardiner and Andre Colebrook who was out and was unable to make it back on time. The members present voiced their disappointment about not running the 4x400m relay and was really upset about the fact that Steven Gardiner didn’t speak with them about his injury and his concerns at the track. President Archer also discussed how to get the team qualified for the World Championships which will be held later on in the year. I also informed the team about their departure times for Monday.

“The men’s 4x200 metre relay team made preparations for their event and left on the 2:30 bus. (The team consisted of Stephen Newbold, Anthony Adderley, Cliff Resias and Shavez Hart). The men ran a fantastic heat and advanced to the finals. Shavez Hart suffered an injury and was replaced by Rico Moultrie. Unfortunately, the baton was dropped on the first exchange and Team Bahamas was disqualified.

MY CONCERNS:

1) Why was the manager not informed of Mr Steven Gardiner’s injury before Saturday?

2) Why was practice held on Saturday but not on Friday like I suggested?

3) Why did the relay coordinator not prepare the 5th and 6th man to run the 4x400 metre relay if he was aware of Steven G’s injury?

4) Knowing of Steven G’s injury, why wasn’t the doctor present to monitor him and to advise whether or not he should run that evening?

5) Did the relay coordinator and doctor communicate with Steven Gardiner on Saturday concerning his injury and his ability to perform?”