The Tribune

AFTER starting its journey in Exuma, the Bahamas Golden Jubilee Games baton has arrived in Grand Bahama.

Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Tourism, Investments and Aviation, I. Chester Cooper, who will represent Exuma and Ragged Island in the upcoming Bahamas Games, passed the golden baton to Ginger Moxey, Minister for Grand Bahama.

Present for the baton’s passing in Grand Bahama were island ambassadors Latoya Dean and Z’haneo Newbold. They assisted with promoting the games by creating and sharing marketing content on their social media handles, providing entertainment and enacting the passing of the baton before the official handover between the island representatives.

Said the senior director of marketing for The Bahamas Golden Jubilee Games, Fernerin Hanna:

“Each island has a local talent and representative who is excited about helping to promote these games and what they represent for our nation and upcoming Golden Jubilee of Independence.”

Hanna hopes to excite Bahamians across the archipelago about the upcoming games and 50th Independence celebrations.

A significant factor, according to Hanna, is the involvement of everyone from Prime Minister Philip Davis, to every member of parliament and island representative to the youngest child.

“These games and all of our other celebrations are about celebrating what is unique and beautiful about being Bahamian and what brings us together as a people.”

The baton, a long symbol of camaraderie and competition, also represents the unification of our islands, according to Minister of Youth, Sports and Culture Mario Bowleg. “In this quest to reinstate the Bahamas Games, we should all be reminded of the importance of the Games as a tool of national integration and sports development.”

Bowleg believes this year’s games should focus on unity under the slogan, “Our Nation, Our Islands, Our Games.

The sixth edition of the Bahamas Golden Jubilee Games, scheduled for July 7-15, is among the activities approved and included for the 50th Anniversary of Independence celebrations.

These upcoming games will feature 16 disciplines, including 10 teams representing 10 islands or groupings of islands, hosted at numerous venues across New Providence.

In addition to baseball, age group categories of competition will only apply to the individual disciplines of boxing, track and field, swimming, lawn tennis, cycling and bodybuilding/powerlifting. There will be a single Open Division in all other sports.

The minimum age category for all competitions is high school for all disciplines. Children are only allowed to participate in swimming. However, this is under review and the public will be notified accordingly.

A major plus for this year’s games is the inclusion of local talent, who represent each of the major islands or group of islands. Each team’s ambassador has been pushing the message of friendly competition and unity.

The ambassadors include local artists, performers, DJs and well-known radio and television personalities, working together to excite, educate and empower Bahamians to participate in or support the upcoming games.

For more information on participation and how you can volunteer or partner for the games, you can check out the website at www.thebahamasgames.org.

Also WhatsApp 809-1242, call 322-1029, email info@thebahamasgames.org or follow The Bahamas Golden Jubilee Games on Tik Tok, and YouTube at @thebahamasgames and Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter at @thebahamagames.