The Tribune

By BRENT STUBBS

Senior Sports Reporter

bstubbs@tribunemedia.net

IN an unprecedented move, the Ministry of Youth, Sports and Culture and Ministry of Education, Science and Technology will hold a Junior National High School Track and Field Championships and Final CARIFTA Trials.

At a press conference yesterday in the foyer of the two ministries in the Ivy Dumont Building, Mario Bowleg, Minister of Youth, Sports and Culture revealed that the two events will be combined for the weekend of March 25-27 at the Thomas A Robinson National Stadium.

Under the theme “Unity Through Sports, a Golden Jubilee,” the event, according to Bowleg, will serve as the test run by the North American, Central American and Caribbean (NACAC) and Bahamas Association of Athletic Associations (BAAA) for the Oaktree Medical Center’s 50th CARIFTA Games, scheduled for April 8-10 at the same venue.

“The High School National Championships and the CARIFTA trials will provide student athletes from throughout the Bahamas the opportunity to showcase their athletic prowess with the hopes of qualifying for the CARIFTA Games,” Bowleg.

Bowleg said this will be a memorable venture and he encourages all student athletes competing in the event to remain optimistic and to be the best athletes they could be on and off the field.

He encouraged the Bahamian public to come out with their junkanoo music and cheer on the student athletes as they vie for their spots on the team to represent the Bahamas at the games.

Zane Lightbourne, the Minister of State in the Ministry of Education, said he’s always delighted to be a part of any event that highlights the prowess of the Bahamian young athletes as a part of the country’s 50th Jubilee Independence celebrations.

Lightbourne said their ministry joins in the enthusiasm of the student athletes as they anticipate the shattering of old records and the emergence of new superstars as they go for gold, not just in the event, but at the CARIFTA Games.

Sands, the president of NACAC, said he remembers in the 1980s when the split took place and that led to the formation of the National High School Track and Field Championships, which created an avenue to bring all schools under one umbrella again.

He noted since the formation of the Nationals under the presidency of the late Dr Bernard Nottage, successive presidents in the BAAA have staged the Nationals almost every year, but now it’s being done in collaboration with both ministries as they seek to bring the sport back to the level that it once enjoyed.

“Nelson Mandela once said sports can change the world. It has the power to inspire and to unite and it speaks a language that all people can understand,” Sands said. “NACAC is proud to be a part of this event and to support all of the athletes as they compete.”

Archer, the president of the BAAA, said it’s a special day in track and field with the High School National Championships and the CARIFTA trials taking place at the same time, bringing together the private and public schools in keen competition like they did before the split between the private and the public schools.

“This is the start of a brand-new day for track and field,” Archer said. “I would go on a limb to say that is an opportunity for us to showcase athletes, not only from New Providence, but every island in the Commonwealth of the Bahamas.”

He congratulated both ministries for having the foresight to stage the dual event, which will provide an opportunity for the BAAA to get a glimpse of what is to come at this year’s CARIFTA Games.

When asked how the event will be operated, Archer said each school will only have two athletes who will be allowed to score points for their team, but they will not be limited to any number of athletes who will be allowed to participate in any event.

He noted that athletes who are not registered by their school can register individually and those who are out of school or are in college, but are still eligible for CARIFTA, will be allowed to participate as well.

The competition will be taking place in the under-14, under-17 and under-20 divisions for both girls and boys.