The Tribune

By Brent Stubbs

Senior Sports Reporter

bstubbs@tribunemedia.net

KNOWN as the consummate public relations officer who eventually excelled to the top of World Athletics as the first Bahamian councilman, Alpheus ‘Hawk’ Finlayson was remembered for his tireless efforts to promote the sport of track and field locally and internationally.

In a shocking development on the national scale, Finlayson passed away on Friday, 15 days after the death of his wife Dawn and one day before she was funeralised. The Finlaysons - Alpheus, 76, and Dawn, 71, were like a true love story as they were almost inseparable.

Called the “Insurance Man,” who enjoyed a long employment with Imperial Life Assurance, advancing to the industry’s prestigious Million Dollar Round Table in 1982 and four other consecutive times, making him a Life Member, Finlayson also served at one time as vice president of the Life Underwriters Association of The Bahamas.

Ali Culmer, a Hall of Fame softball coach who spent about 40 years working with Alpheus Finlayson, said they crossed paths as youngsters growing up in the Valley and they both went to Eastern Junior High School, even though he’s older by about four years with his 80th birthday coming up in November.

“We always played together growing up, but of course he ventured into track and field and I went into softball,” said Culmer, known as the skipper of the Colina Crows, one of the most dominant women’s softball teams in the New Providence Softball Association.

“We were friends for many years and we were always friends. He was somebody to look up to and he was admired and loved by everybody around him. I never really saw Hawk get mad. He might have been, but he never expressed it. He also had a smile and some words of encouragement for everyone he came in contact with.”

Through their work ethic after a merger between Imperial Life and Colina Insurance, Culmer said he, Finlayson, Bernard Hanna and the late Bruce Hanna were placed on the Wall of Fame inside Colina in 2005 for 30 years of dedicated service to the company.

Bernard Hanna, another close collegiate at Imperial Life, was unavailable for comments.

In a tribute, his younger brother, “Master Motivator” Spence Finlayson referred to Hawk as a big brother in every sense of the word.

“He was a caring, passionate big brother, a real true big brother in every sense of the word, who looked out for me every step of the way,” said Spence Finlayson, who relayed some of those sentiments at the funeral service of Dawn Finlayson at St George’s Anglican Church on Saturday.

“I’ve been blessed as the last child to have big brothers and a sister who looked after me, checking up on me periodically to see how I was doing. They would call on the lil brother just to see if I was doing alright. And they led by example.”

He didn’t get the opportunity to go off to college like everybody else because he chose to stay home to take care of his mother, who had suffered a stroke while their father passed away one year after he graduated from St Augustine’s College.

“When you look after your parents, especially your mother, God will always look after you and he blessed me with a gift that keeps on giving right up to this day,” said Spence Finlayson, who now hosts a popular weekly morning show on ZNS Radio and television.

As a prolific writer coming out of SAC in 1966 where he was the co-editor of the “Beacon” year book with Kin Wah Ng, Hawk went on to scribe his own weekly columns on “Track World” from 1980 to 1986 in The Tribune and producing his “Best Seller”, “From Vancouver to Athens: Finlayson Fifty Years of Bahamian International Track & Field Competition”.

Additionally, his voice was echoed over the airwaves through his television show on ZNS called “Track World with Alpheus Finlayson” that eventually moved to Guardian Radio 96.9 FM since 2013 as he recalled the performances he watched from attending every IAAF World Championships, from Helsinki in 1983 to London in 2017 before the name was changed to World Athletics.

Nicknamed “Hawk” for the manner in which he glided through the air as he competed in the triple jump, Alpheus Finlayson broke many barriers, serving as co-captain of the St John’s University track team, president of the Pioneer’s Sporting Club, and of the Bahamas Amateur Athletic Association from 1989 to 1997.

He was elected vice president of the Central American and Caribbean Athletic Confederation as well as vice president of the North American, Central American and Caribbean Area Athletic Association.

It was during Finlayson’s administration of the Bahamas Amateur Athletic Association in 1992 that the first Bahamian Olympic medalintrackand eldwas won, and in 1995 and 1997 the rst three World Cham- pionship medals were won.

Spence Finlayson said many of Hawk’s accomplishments inspired him to be the man that he is today.

“All of the brothers triple jump and it was because of him,” said Spence Finlayson, who followed in his big brother’s footsteps at St Augustine’s College, while his deceased brothers Roosevelt competed for Government High and Iowa State University and Joey at St John’s College.

“He was doing so many things from way back. I joined the Pioneers Sporting Track Club when he was president and he would take us to track meets in the US.

He came up with a novel idea of raising funds with a run-a-thon instead of a walk-a-thon.

“We went foreign where he rented cars out of Miami and drove us to Tennessee and Atlanta to compete 30-50 years ago.”

North American, Central American and Caribbean president Mike Sands, who was encouraged to get into the administration of track and field after his competitive days, firstly as the athletes’ representative, said Hawk Finlayson was considered his mentor as he moved into the public relations office and then the presidency of the BAAA.

“It’s a very, very sad day for track and field, not just in the Bahamas, but globally. Alpheus was a fixture. He was not just Alpheus. He was known as Mr Track and Field worldwide,” Sands pointed out.

“He was known throughout the entire world for his passion, his dedication, his commitment and his love or the sport.

“He will be sorely missed. On my behalf, I relied on him. It was because of him that I am still involved in the sport. He was my friend, my confidante, my mentor, so I relied very heavily on him, to be guided by him, along with the late Dr Bernard Nottage. So it’s a very sad moment for me and the sport in general.”

As a pioneer and visionary leader, Hawk Finlayson agitated for the athletes’ subvention (from the Bahamas government) and he agitated for the continued progress of the sport as he moved track and field to another level.

“He had a vision where he wanted the sport and the athletes to go and I think he was able to achieve some of those goals,” said Sands of Hawk Finlayson, who gave his life to the sport and should have some type of monument erected in his memory.

Under the leadership of Dr Nottage and through the assistance of Hawk Finlayson and Sands, the National High School Track and Field gave birth in the 1980s and is now one of the premier sporting events hosted by the BAAA outside of the National Championships.

Current BAAA president Drumeco Archer said Hawk Finlayson was not just a name, he was a global icon and a household name.

“His unwavering dedication to the world of sports knew no bounds. He was a walking encyclopedia of statistics, effortlessly recalling details that left the rest of us in awe,” he said. “His knowledge of the sport was unmatched, and he had an unparalleled ability to remember even the smallest of details, leaving an indelible mark on the world of athletics.

“Hawk’s departure is a poignant reminder that the archive of his brilliant mind is now gone, but his legacy will continue to shine brightly in the annals of sports history. Beyond his remarkable achievements in the sporting world, he was a brother to everyone who had the privilege of knowing him. His genuine warmth and unwavering support for others made him a true family man, extending his love and kindness to the far reaches of the globe.”

Minister of Youth, Sports and Culture Mario Bowleg was saddened by the news of the passing of Hawk Finlayson, a sporting icon and giant.

“When it comes to sporting legends, Hawk, as he was affectionately called, name was like a guiding star. His passion for sports, especially track and field, was shared in many arenas - locally and internationally,” Bowleg said. “The depth of his knowledge, his constant encouragement and passion for sports will be missed.”

Bowleg expressed his gratitude on behalf of a grateful nation, extending condolences to the Finlayson family, especially on the passing of his wife as well, to the friends and many loved ones and to the track and field families, both near and far.

On a personal note, I travelled with Hawk Finlayson and historian Stanley Mitchell to a number of international track and field competitions and it was always a pleasure to see how respected he was among his peers from around the world.

There was hardly a conversation had inside the Main Press Center, or MPC as we called our office away from the Bahamas, that some reference wasn’t made to or about Hawk Finlayson when it came down to the work that he did behind the scenes.

Known as a “Valley Boy,” who also attended Eastern Junior High School, Alpheus and Dawn Finlayson, nee Rolle, produced one daughter, Alexis Hanna, three granddaughters, Shandia Finlayson, Ebony Howell and Selah Hanna, two grandsons Nassir and Sadiq Hanna, and two great-granddaughters, Kiyah Major and Eva Howell.