Tuesday, June 28, 2016

#By BRENT STUBBS

#Senior Sports Reporter

#bstubbs@tribunemedia.net

#Quarter-miler Shaunae Miller was named the Charlie Major Athlete of the Year and James Rolle, who coaches a number of high jumpers, was selected as the Coach of the Year as the Bahamas Association of Athletic Associations held its awards banquet to honour their most outstanding athletes for the 2015 season.

#Miller earned the highest honour given to the athletes at the awards banquet held Sunday night at the Breezes SuperClubs. The event came on the heels of the BAAAs hosting both its junior and senior nationals that wrapped up on Saturday at the new Thomas A Robinson National Stadium.

#The award was presented to Miller for her achievement as a silver medallist in the women’s 400 metres at the IAAF World Championships in Beijing, China. Miller also added the women’s 200m in a time of 22.14 seconds at the Jamaican Invitational to add to her 400m feat.

#She was also named the Senior Female Athlete of the Year in the awards banquet that was postponed from last November.

#The Thomas A Robinson Male Athlete of the Year went to Jeffery Gibson. The national 400m hurdles champion won the gold in the men’s 400m hurdles at the Pan American Games in Canada and a bronze at the IAAF World Championships, while lowering his national record a couple times last year.

#James Rolle earned the Henry Crawford Coach of the Year honours for the role he played as the coach of Ryan Ingraham, the bronze medallist in the high jump at the NACAC Championships and the national high jump champion LaQuain Nairn, the silver medallist in the high jump at the Carifta Games and Charisma Taylor, the gold medallist in both the long and triple jumps at Carifta.

#Among the other winners of the prestigious awards were Paige Stuart, Benjamin Clarke, Brianne Bethel and Devynne Charlton.

#Stuart was named the Angela Rolle Youth Female Athlete of the Year after she won the Youth Championship trials, competed on the Youth CAC team where she turned in a gold medal performance in the high jump in Trinidad & Tobago.

#Clarke, on the other hand, carted off the Youth Male Athlete of the Year by making the Youth CAC team and accomplished a record at the games in high jump with his gold medal performance to go along with his silver in the long jump in Trinidad & Tobago.

#Bethel, a native from Grand Bahama, won the Dr Bernard Nottage Junior Athlete of the Year after she won a bronze in the 100m and silver in the 200m at Carifta, was a semi-finalist in both the 100 and 200m at the IAAF World Youth Championships and a member of the women’s 4 x 200m team at the IAAF World Relays here in New Providence.

#Charlton was named as the Collegiate Athlete of the Year after the former co-national 100m hurdles record holder ran 8.17 seconds indoors to post the second fastest time in Bahamian history and was a sixth place finisher at the NACAC Championships.

• Here’s a look at the winners in the various categories:

#• Angela Rolle Youth Female Athlete of the Year – Paige Stuart. She went to the Youth CAC Championships in Trinidad & Tobago where she won the gold in the 60m and high jump, as well as a bronze in the long jump and established a games record in picking up another gold in the 100m as she went on to win the girls 11-12 division.

#• Youth Male Athlete of the Year – Benjamin Clarke. He participated at the Youth CAC in Trinidad & Tobago where he won the high jump in a games’ record performance and was a a silver medallist in the long jump.

#• Anita Doherty Junior Female Track Athlete of the Year – Brianne Bethel and Shaquania Dorsett.

#Bethel won a bronze in the 100m and silver in the 200m at the Carifta Games and was a semi-finalist in both the 100 and 200m at the World Youth Championships and was a finalist on the women’s 4 x 200m at the IAAF World Relays and Dorsett won the gold in both the 400 and 800m at Carifta and was a member of the women’s 4 x 400m relay at the IAAF World Relays.

#• Basil Neymour Junior Male Athlete of the Year – Javan Martin. The Grand Bahamian was a semi-finalist at the World Youth Championships after winning a gold in the under-20 boys 100m and silver in the 200m at Carifta as well as he competed on the men’s 4 x 100m at the World Relays.

#• Ronald Cartwright Junior Female Field Athlete of the Year – Charisma Taylor. The versatile athlete was the double gold medallist in the under-18 girls long and triple jumps at Carifta.

#• Keith Parker Junior Male Field Athlete of the Year – Deondre Rutherford. He captured the gold in the under-18 boys discus at Carifta and was the junior national champion in the same event.

#• Dianna Lynn Thompson Junior Female Athlete of the Year – Brianne Bethel. The Grand Bahamian picked up a bronze in the 100m and silver in the 200m at the Carifta Games and was a semi-finalist in both the 100 and 200m at the World Youth Championships and was a finalist on the women’s 4 x 200m at the IAAF World Relays.

#• Errol Bodie Junior Female Athlete of the Year – Javon Martin. The Grand Bahamian was a semi-finalist at the World Youth Championships after winning a gold in the under-20 boys 100m and silver in the 200m at Carifta as well as he competed on the men’s 4 x 100m at the World Relays.

#• Bernard Nottage Junior Athlete of the Year – Brianne Bethel. The Grand Bahamian picked up a bronze in the 100m and silver in the 200m at the Carifta Games and was a semifinalist in both the 100 and 200m at the World Youth Championships and was a finalist on the women’s 4 x 200m at the IAAF World Relays.

#• Sir Durward Knowles Family Island Athlete – Brianne Bethel. The Grand Bahamian picked up a bronze in the 100m and silver in the 200m at the Carifta Games and was a semifinalist in both the 100 and 200m at the World Youth Championships and was a finalist on the women’s 4 x 200m at the IAAF World Relays.

#• Collegiate Female Track Athlete of the Year – Devynne Charlton. She was named as the Collegiate Athlete of the Year after the former co-national 100m hurdles record holder ran 8.17 seconds indoors to post the second fastest time in Bahamian history and was a sixth place finisher at the NACAC Championships.

#• Collegiate Male Track Athlete of the Year – Ashley Riley. He was a double Southland Indoor and Outdoor Championships’ 400m finalist.

#• Collegiate Female Field Athlete of the Year – Tamara Myers. She was the SEC Championship fifth place finisher and NCAA Indoor Championship seventh place finisher in the women’s triple jump.

#• Collegiate Male Field Athlete of the Year – Latario Collie-Minns. The twin brother came through as a second place finisher at the NCAA Outdoor Championship in the men’s triple jump.

#• Collegiate Female Athlete of the Year – Devynne Charlton. She was named as the Collegiate Athlete of the Year after the former co-national 100m hurdles record holder ran 8.17 seconds indoors to post the second fastest time in Bahamian history and was a sixth place finisher at the NACAC Championships.

#• Harrison Petty Collegiate Male Athlete of the Year – Latario Collie-Minns. The twin brother came through as a second place finisher at the NCAA Outdoor Championship in the men’s triple jump.

#• Collegiate Athlete of the Year – Devynne Charlton. She was named as the Collegiate Athlete of the Year after the former co-national 100m hurdles record holder ran 8.17 seconds indoors to post the second fastest time in Bahamian history and was a sixth place finisher at the NACAC Championships.

#• Senior Female Track Athlete of the Year – Shaunae Miller. She was a silver medallist in the women’s 400 metres at the IAAF World Championships in Beijing, China. Miller also added the women 200m in a time of 22.14 seconds at the Jamaican Invitational to add to her 400m feat.

#• Senior Male Track Athlete of the Year – Jeffery Gibson. The Grand Bahamian national 400m hurdles champion won the gold in the men’s 400m hurdles at the Pan American Games in Canada and a bronze at the IAAF World Championships, while lowering his national record a couple times last year.

#• Senior Female Field Athlete of the Year – Bianca Stuart. The national long jump champion went on to lower her national record to 6.83m and earned a silver medal at the Pan American Games.

#• Senior Male Field Athlete of the Year – Leevan Sands. In the comeback performance of the year, the men’s national triple jump record holder won the national title, got a bronze medal at the NACAC Championships, silver at the Pan Am Games and was a finalist at the World Championships.

Tuesday, August 6, 2019

#By BRENT STUBBS

#Senior Sports Reporter

#bstubbs@tribunemedia.net

#WITH the tennis competition completed, the focus for Team Bahamas at the XVIII Pan American Games in Lima, Peru, switches to athletics, swimming and judo this week.

#Both the 19-member track and field team, the 10-member swim team and the two judokas will begin competition today as the third and final week of competition swings into high gear.

#The games will wrap up on Sunday.

#At the swim complex in the National Sports Village – Videna, Laura Morley will be the first Bahamian to make her splash as she competes in the women’s 100 metre breaststroke heats at 11am.

#William Tyler Russell will be entered in the men’s 100m breaststroke.

#Also on tap will be the 4 x 100m freestyle relays where the Bahamas will be competing in both the women’s and men’s events.

#In the ladies’ event, the selection will come from the combination of Morley, veteran Ariel Weech and sisters Lilly and Margaret Albury Higgs.

#The men will come from all six competitors of the team, inclusive of Russell, DaVante Carey, N’Nhyn Fernander, Jared Fitzgerald, Gershwin Greene and Luke Kennedy Thompson.

#During the course of the week, the swimmers will be in action in their individual events as well as the mixed 4 x 100m free relay; 4 x 100m medley for men and women and mixed relays.

#Individually, Morley is also competing in the women’s 200m breaststroke and 200m individual medley; Margaret Albury Higgs will be in the women’s 200m breaststroke; Lilly Higgs is in the women’s 100 and 200m free and Ariel Weech will be in the women’s 50m free.

#On the men’s side, William Tyler Russell is also competing in the 200m breaststroke; Davante Carey is in the 100m backstroke; N’Nhyn Fernander is in the 100m butterfly; Jared Fitzgerald is in the 200m freestyle; Gershwin Greene in 50m freestyle and Luke Kennedy Thompson will be in the 1,500m freestyle and 200m individual medley.

#Their team is being coached by Andy Loveitt, assisted by Jorge Rodriquez. The team manager is Rochelle Bastian.

#Over at the Athletic Stadium in the National Sports Village – Videna, national record holder Ken Munnings will perform in the first five of his 10 events over the next two days in the men’s decathlon, starting at 2pm.

#He will contest the 100 metres, long jump, shot put, high jump and 400m. On Wednesday, his final events will be 110m hurdles, discus, pole vault, javelin and 1,500m.

#Also today, Grand Bahamians Brianna Bethel and Ty’Nia Gaither will carry the Bahamian flag in the women’s 100m semi-finals, while Warren Fraser is entered in the men’s event.

#It will be a busy day for the track team as Katrina Seymour will contest the women’s 400m hurdles semi-finals and national record and defending champion Jeffery Gibson will be joined by Andre Colebrooke in the men’s 400m hurdles.

#Individually, Gaither and Anthonique Strachan will double up in the 200m; Doneisha Anderson will be the lone representative in the 400m and national record holder Pedrya Seymour and Devynne Charlton will battle it out in the 100m hurdles.

#Bethel, Gaither, Strachan, Charlton and the two Seymours are also listed in the pool for the women’s 4 x 100m relay. They are hoping to get a chance to run one of the top 16 times to get a chance to compete at the IAAF World Championships next month in Doha, Qatar.

#As for the men, Cliff Resias is in the 200m; Grand Bahamian Alonzo Russell, who booked his ticket to Qatar at the BAAA Nationals in Grand Bahama a week ago, will be in the 400m; Donald Thomas and Jamal Wilson are both in the high jump and twin brothers Latario and Lathone Collie-Minns are scheduled to compete in the triple jump.

#The Bahamas will also have a lane in the 4 x 400m with the pool comprising of Cliff Resias, Alonzo Russell, Andre Colebrooke, Jeffery Gibson, Michael Mathieu and Ojay Ferguson.

#Rudolph Ferguson is the head coach for the team. He will be assisted by Tyrone Burrows, James Rolle and Kennord Mackey. Dawn Woodside-Johnson is the manager.

#The two judokas – Sasha Ingraham and Cynthia Rahming – will compete in their judo competition, starting on Thursday. They will be coached by Onesi Portorreal-Pons.

#In tennis, the team of Justin Roberts and Baker Newman competed in the men’s team. They both made it to the second round in singles, but lost as a pair in doubles in the first round. They were coached by Derron Donaldson. The chef de mission for the Bahamian delegation is D’Arcy Rahming.

Thursday, July 4, 2019

#By RENALDO DORSETT

#Tribune Sports Reporter

#rdorsett@tribunemedia.net

#THE Bahamas Olympic Committee released the names of the athletes invited to participate in the 2019 Pan American Games.

#The Bahamas will compete in four disciplines – athletics, swimming, tennis and judo – at the 18th edition of the games, to be hosted July 26 to August 11 in Lima, Peru.

#Rommell Knowles, president of the Bahamas Olympic Committee, said final rosters are still yet to be determined based on several factors, including athlete availability.

#“This process in terms of team selection came from their regional bodies. The BOC did not select this team, rather, they were invited directly by their regional governing bodies of their respective sports.

#“These persons were invited to the games but we are still at the BOC level confirming that these athletes will be available and we will be able to confirm the athletes that will participate in the games in short order,” he said.

#“Obviously the organisers want a good product so they anticipate the Bahamas, like others, will send the best athletes to represent the country so that they have a very quality and competitive game. So, we are preaching that message and hopefully in years to come, working in conjunction with the ministry responsible for subvention, the message will reverberate and the athletes will react accordingly.”

#The Bahamas once again missed out on qualification in team sports. “Team sports are very difficult to qualify, we had beach volleyball and basketball on the cusp and it’s very unfortunate because for a moment there we thought that they were in,” Knowles said.

#Chef de’ Mission, D’Arcy Rahming, said the Pan Am Games invitation represents another landmark moment in the local progression of judo in the Bahamas.

#“We have good expectations here. We are really proud of Sasha Ingraham who is a UB student, has training less than a year, yet she managed to qualify,” Rahming said.

#“We knew Cynthia would qualify because she’s been on that trend but we are delighted to have these athletes come through. They have been in the work and we are expecting great results.”

#Team manager Dawn Johnson said expectations remain high for the team. “We have an awesome team, obviously we expect them to do well and they are excited. Even though they will be coming off the Senior National Championships in Freeport, the next week they will be in Peru at the Pan Am Games and we expect them to do well.”

#Close to 6,700 athletes representing 41 countries — all members of the Pan American Sports Organisation — will compete in 39 sports and 62 disciplines.

#Lima was awarded the Games in 2013, marking Peru’s first time as host. Mexico and Canada have hosted the Games three times each, while Argentina, the US and Brazil have each done so twice. Colombia, Puerto Rico, Venezuela, Cuba and the Dominican Republic have all hosted once.

#At the 2015 Pan Am Games hosted in Toronto, Canada, the Bahamas fielded 38 athletes in five disciplines and won a total of six medals – two gold, two silver and two bronze.

#Jeffery Gibson took gold in the 400m hurdles while Arianna Vanderpool-Wallace also swam to a gold medal in the 50m free.

#Leevan Sands (triple jump), Bianca Stuart (long jump), and Vanderpool-Wallace (100m Free) also won bronze and Donald Thomas won bronze in the high jump.

#Sport/Name Sex Category Event[s]

#TENNIS

#Justin Roberts Male Athlete Men’s Single/Double

#Baker Newman Male Athlete Men’s Single/Double

#Derron Donaldson Male Coach

#SWIMMING

#Albury Higgs Female Athlete 200 Breaststroke/Relays

#Lilly Higgs Female Athlete 100 Freestyle/200 Freestyle/Relays

#Laura Morley Female Athlete 100 Breaststroke/200 Freestyle/

#200 Individual Medley

#Ariel Weech Female Athlete 50 Freestyles/ Relays

#DaVante Carey Male Athlete 100 Backstroke

#N’Nhyn Fernander Male Athlete 100 Butterfly

#Jared Fritzgerald Male Athlete 100 Freestyle

#Gershwin Greene Male Athlete 50 Freestyle

#William Tyler Russell Male Athlete 100 Breaststroke/200 Breaststroke

#Luke-Kenndedy Thompson Male Athlete 1500 Freestyle/

#200 Individual Medley

#Andrew Loveitt Male Coach

#Jorge Rodriguez Male Assistant Coach

#Rochelle Bastian Female Team Manager

#ATHLETICS

#Warren Fraser Male Athlete Men’s 100m

#Samson Colebrooke Male Athlete Men’s 100m

#Cliff Resias Male Athlete Men’s 200m

#Alonzo Russell Male Athlete Men’s 400m/4×4 Relay

#Jeffrey Gibson Male Athlete Men’s 400m Hurdles

#Andre Colebrooke Male Athlete Men’s 400m

#Hurdles/4×4 Relay

#Donald Thomas Male Athlete High Jump

#Jamaal Wilson Male Athlete High Jump

#Latario Collie Male Athlete Triple Jump

#Lathone Collie Male Athlete Triple Jump

#Ojay Ferguson Male Athlete Men’s 4X400 Relay

#Michael Mathieu Male Athlete Men’s 4×400 Relays

#Brianne Bethel Female Athlete Women’s 100m/200m/4×100

#Devynne Charlton Female Athlete Women’s 100m/4×100/

#100m Hurdles

#Tynia Gaither Female Athlete Women’s 200m/100m Hurdles/

#4×100 Relay

FROM LEFT: At the BOC press conference to name the Commonwealth Games team are Cora Hepburn, Roy Colebrook, Rommel Knowles, Derron Donaldson and Ralph McKinney.

Friday, March 16, 2018

#By BRENT STUBBS

#Senior Sports Reporter

#bstubbs@tribunemedia.net

#THE Bahamas Olympic Committee yesterday announced a 31-member team that will represent the Bahamas at the 2018 Commonwealth Games, scheduled for April 4-15 in the Gold Coast, Australia.

#While Olympic champion Shaunae Miller-Uibo will lead a 19-member athletic team (track and field), collegian Joanna Evans travels along with three other swimmers to compete alongside two boxers and two wrestlers.

#But for the first time, the Bahamas will be represented by a competitor in triathlon and another in table tennis.

#BOC’s president Rommel Knowles said they are excited to have two of the small sports making their presence felt on the team this year as they live up to their mandate to include as many sports as possible. “For the very first time in our history, we have two new Olympic sports competing in the Commonwealth Games,” Knowles said. “We are excited about the opportunity to have table tennis and triathlon compete for the first time.”

#Cameron Roach will be the lone representative to compete in triathlon, comprising of a swim, bike and run, while Adrian Rollins will carry the banner in table tennis.

#Knowles said the BOC didn’t have any qualification standards for the games, but they relied on the international bodies in the various sports to make the determination on the criteria for the team selections.

#However, he pointed out that there was a quota imposed by the Local Organising Committee in the Gold Coast and they made sure that they didn’t go over the room limit so the Bahamas was forced to reduce the size of its team that is normally around 45-50 strong.

#Roy Colebrook, who will serve as the chef de mission, said once the various federations submitted the names of the competitors who are available to compete, the BOC went ahead and completed the list.

#“Our management team will do our very best to ensure that we will have victory at the Commonwealth Games and we in the management team will do our very best to ensure that the athletes and the officials are comfortable and that they will compete at the best of their abilities.”

#On the track and field team, manager Ralph McKinney said because of the games coming so early in the year, there are no collegiate athletes named.

#He noted that the Bahamas Association of Athletic Associations has only submitted the names of the professional athletes who are available to compete.

#“That’s a good thing,” he said, adding that they are looking forward to some outstanding performances from the athletes who will make the trip. “This allows the college based athletes to get ready for the other meets in the summer.”

#Even though he was named to the team to compete in the men’s 400m and on the 4 x 400 metre relay team, there is a possibility that Steven Gardiner may skip the trip because of travel restrictions in the United States.

#Knowles said they are looking at trying to get him replaced on the team.

#In addition to athletics, swimming, cycling, triathlon, boxing, the other sports to be contested at the games are badminton, basketball, beach volleyball, diving, gymnastics,

#As the chief de mission, Colebrook will be leaving on March 25 to pave the way for the athletes when they hockey, lawn bowls, netball, para powerlifting, rugby sevens, shooting, squash and weightlifting.

#The Bahamas Gymnastics Federation has a competitor who would have competed in the games, but Cora Hepburn, of the BOC’s vice presidents, said because of the age factor, Sydney Wells is not allowed to participate.

#“She is 14 years old and while she qualified for the Commonwealth Games, she is not allowed to participate because of her age,” said Hepburn, of Wells who is currently training in New Jersey to become an elite gymnast by the end of the year and should be available to compete in other international meets.

#Here’s a look at the official list of the Bahamas delegation for the 2018 Commonwealth Games in the Gold Coast, Australia from April 4-15:

#Team Officials

#Wellington Miller – CGA Representative.

#Roy Colebrook – Chef de Mission.

#Cora Hepburn – General Team Manager.

#Derron Donaldson – Secretary General.

#Athletics – Ralph McKinney, Rupert Gardiner, Mabeline Miller, Frank Rahming and Peter Pratt.

#Triathlon – Dorian Roach.

#Swimming – Sarah Knowles, John Bradley and Andy Loveitt.

#Cycling – Roshawn Jones.

#Wrestling – Clarence Rolle.

#Boxing – Valentino Knowles.

#Chief Medical Officer – Dr. Rickey Davis.

#Medical Staff – Cottrice Robinson.

#Physiotherapitst – Corderro Bonamy.

#Team Members

#Athletics women – Tynia Gaither (100m/4x100m relay); Shaunae Miller-Uibo (200m/4x100m relay); Anthonique Strachan (200m/4x100m relay); Bianca Stuart (long jump); Tamara Myers (triple jump/4x100m relay); V’Alonee Robinson (100m/4x100m relay) and Katrina Seymour (400m hurdles).

#Athletic men – Stephen Newbold (4x40m relay); Donald Thomas (high jump); Jamal Wilson (high jump); Jeffery Gibson (400m hurdles); Latario Collie (triple jump); Teray Smith (200m/4x400m relay); Ramon Miller (4x400m relay); Michael Mathieu (400/4x400m relay); Stephen Gardiner (200m/4x400m relay); Warren Fraser (100m); Shavez Hart (100/200m) and Alonzo Russell (400m/4x400m relay).

#Boxing – Carl Hield (69 kg) and Rashield Williams (64 kg).

#Cycling – Roy Colebrook (road race) and Jay Major (road race).

#Swimming women – Joanna Evans (200m free, 400m free and 800m free) and Lillian Higgs (100m breatstroke, 200m breaststroke and 200m individual medley).

#Swimming men – N’Nyhn Fernander (100m butterfly, 100m freestyle, 50m butterfly and 50m freestyle) and Izaak Bastian (100m breaststroke, 200m breaststroke, 200m individual medley, 50m breaststroke, 50m butterfly and 50m freestyle).

#Triathlon – Cameron Roach (men’s triathlon).

#Table Tennis – Adrian Rollins (men’s singles).

#Wrestling – Rashji Mackey (men’s freestyle 88 kg) and Sean Wrinkle (men’s 74 kg).

Tuesday, August 2,

#By BRENT STUBBS

#Senior Sports Reporter

#bstubbs@tribunemedia.net

#HEAD coach George Cleare said he’s anticipating some outstanding performances from the 26 athletes selected to represent the BTC Bahamas Olympic Team in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

#If they perform up to his expectations, Cleare said the Bahamas could come back with at least four medals.

#A total of 30 athletes from three disciplines, rowing and swimming included, are either already in Rio or are en route to the games, according to Bahamas team manager Ralf McKinney.

#The majority of the track team left either New Providence or the United States on Monday and should arrive in Rio today.

#There are other track athletes who will be coming in before the games get started on Friday with the official opening ceremonies.

#However, he said the last two competitors, Jeffery Gibson and Trevor Barry, would be heading to Rio around August 10-11, just in time for the start of the athletic competition.

#“We sent our final arrival itinerary into the International Olympic Committee and our chef de mission Roy Colebrooke and the president Wellington Miller are already there, so they are just waiting on us to get there,” McKinney said.

#Barry, one of three high jumpers competing, came into town from North Dakota to go through some final training sessions with his personal coach Keith Parker, while hurdler Gibson will be spending the extra time to train with his personal coach in the United States.

#Looking at the team selected, Cleare said there is a good group of individuals on their way to Rio and he’s looking forward to everyone turning in their personal best performances.

#“If we can do that, I could see us easily being in contention for at least four medals,” he said.

#“But it’s a tough road and our job as a coaching staff is to get our athletes as comfortable as possible and physically and mentally prepared to get them to perform at their best at the games.”

#As for the medals, Cleare pointed out that he’s looking at the possibility of the men and women getting on the podium in the 400 metres; the men’s 4 x 400m relay and the men’s high jump.

#“But strength across the board, this is the Olympic Games and I don’t like to count medals because you don’t want to count out athletes,” he said. “When you have athletes like Bob Beamon, who did something crazy and was able to hold onto his long jump record for years.

#“So at the Olympic Games anything is possible and I’m looking for our athletes to do their personal best performances and rise to the occasion. We have some quarter-milers like Chris Brown and Steven Gardiner and we have Shaunae Miller, so we have some good prospects for medals.”

#The athletic team, which will be minus two women’s hurdlers Devynne Charlton and Adanaca Brown, will comprise of the following athletes:

#MEN – Trevor Barry (high jump); Shavez Hart (100/200m); Demetrius Pinder (200m/4x400m relay); Chris Brown (400m/4x400m relay); Michael Mathieu (4x400m relay); Jamal Wilson (high jump); Donald Thomas (high jump); Leevan Sands (triple jump); Stephen Newbold (4x 400m relay); Jeffery Gibson (400m hurdles); Adrian Griffith (100m); Jamial Rolle (100m); Latario Collie (triple jump); Alonzo Russell (400m/4x400m relay); Steven Gardiner (400m/4x400m relay) and Teray Smith (200m).

#Women – Tynia Gaither (100/200m); Anthonique Strachan (200m/4x400m relay); Sheniqua Ferguson (200m); Shaunae Miller (400m/4x400m relay); Bianca Stuart long jump); Pedrya Seymour (100m hurdles) and Lanece Clarke, Christine Amertil, Carmiesha Cox and Shaquania Dorsett (all in the 4x400m relay).

#They will join the one-woman rowing team of Emily Morley and the three-member swim team of Arianna Vanderpol-Wallace, Joanna Evan and Dustin Tynes, who should already in Rio. Morley will be entered in the women’s single sculls; Vanderpool-Wallace in the women’s 100m butterfly, 100m freestyle and 50m freestyle; Evans in the women’s 200m freestyle, 400m freestyle and 800m freestyle and Tynes in the men’s 100m breaststroke.

#The games will get started on Friday night at 7 pm. The swimming and rowing competition will start on Saturday, while the track and field competition commences on Friday, August 12.

#The games will close on Sunday, August 21.

BAHAMAS Olympic Committee secretary general Romel Knowles (centre) releases the names of the 28 athletes who will represent the Bahamas at the Rio Olympics August 5-21. BOC President Wellington Miller (far right) and Minister of Youth, Sports & Culture Dr Daniel Johnson (left) look on during the press conference yesterday. Photo by Shawn Hanna/Tribune Staff

f Sunday, July 24, 2016

#By BRENT STUBBS

#Senior Sports Reporter

#bstubbs@tribunemedia.net

#Against the backdrop of a $125,000 sponsorship from BTC, the Bahamas Olympic Committee announced a 28-member team to represent the Bahamas at the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

#The BTC Bahamas Olympic team, scheduled to compete August 5-21, will comprise of 11 females and 17 males, excluding the list of the women’s 4 x 400 metre relay team until the completion of the court hearing for the Russian Olympic team.

#BOC secretary general Romel Knowles released the team during a pomp and pageantry press conference at the new Thomas A Robinson National Stadium where there was a cultural dance and a junkanoo rush out.

#As expected, all of the athletes from track and field who qualified were named to the team, including former women’s co-national 100m hurdles record holder Devynne Charlton, who has suffered an injury and had to shut down the rest of her season.

#“As I speak to you, I will not be able to announce some young ladies on this team because of an indictment that is happening in track and field,” Knowles said. “Some of you know the story of a federation being suspended.

#“Our ladies’ team is sitting in 17th place, just one behind a team, I won’t be the judge, who should or should not qualify for the Olympics.”

#Depending on the outcome of the international ruling, Knowles said they have advised the Bahamas Association of Athletic Associations that they would include the team of Lanece Clarke, Shaquania Dorsett, Christine Armertil and Carmeisha Cox to the team.

#Knowles said it’s so unfortunate, like a case where he had to present Pauline Davis-Thompson her Olympic medal at Government House after an athlete was tested positive for drugs, that the BOC finds itself in another predicament in not being able to name the women’s relay team for the Bahamas.

#Should Russia eventually be banned from competing at the games, the women’s team will be added to the men’s 4 x 400 team, giving the Bahamas two of the four relay teams a lane in the games.

#As anticipated, track and field will have a bulk of the competitors on the team, led by triple qualifier Shaunae Miller in the women’s 100, 200 and 400m, along with three male high jumpers for the first time in Donald Thomas, Trevor Barry and Jamal Wilson.

#In addition to athletics, Team Bahamas will carry three swimmers, headed by two-time Olympian Arianna Vanderpool-Wallace, along with rising star Joanna Evans, who both have also qualified for three events.

#The only other discipline named to the BTC Bahamas Olympic team is rowing with Emily Morley making history as the first Bahamian to compete in the non-traditional water sport.

#After the announcement of the team, the BOC presented a $5,000 cheque to the Bahamas Lawn Tennis Association to help cover the expenses incurred from the men’s Davis Cup team that travelled to Bolivia.

#The team of veteran player/captain Marvin Rolle, rookie brothers Spencer and Baker Newman and four-time team member Kevin Major Jr returned home after going through the week long tournament undefeated to advance out of Zone III and back into Zone II for 2017.

#In turn, BTC’s Chief Executive Officer Leon Williams and Vice President, Marketing, Brand & Communications, Eldri Ferguson-Mackey, presented the BOC with a cheque for $125,000 for their second consecutive sponsorship of the Olympic team.

#Ferguson-Mackey said the cheque is to assist the BOC in their expenses for the games and she complimented their brand ambassadors, Demetrius Pinder, Arianna Vanderpool-Wallace and Shaunae Miller, who all made the team, indicating that they are expecting some gold from them.

#In response, BOC’s president Wellington Miller said the cheque would go a long way in taking care of their expenses for the games, which Romel Knowles echoed that the BOC will be spending on airfare tickets and the per diam for the athletes.

#Williams, who made the presentation just 24 hours after they gave $30,000 to the National Sports Authority to assist in hosting the Haitian versus Jamaican soccer game next Friday at the stadium, said BTC is excited about not only sponsoring Team Bahamas, but to also be in position to allow Bahamians to watch the games live from Rio.

#“We are looking for some medals, preferrably gold,” Williams said. “For the first time, BTC will be bringing you live the Olympic coverage through our FLOW competition.

#“We’re launched in Bimini and Inagua and we have Beta testing in Long Island, Andros and Cat Island and for the first time in history, they will be able to watch Bahamian athletes compete. BTC and FLOW TV have the broadcast rights to the Olympics.”

#Through this partnership, Williams said Bahamians won’t have to worry about the broadcast of the Bahamas during the march pass being interrupted by the commercials played by the American, Canadian and British channels during their airing of the opening ceremonies.

#“This time around, we hope that it will be different because it will be on our Caribbean network FLOW,” he said. “Wherever there is a Caribbean network, you will get to watch it brought to you by FLOW.”

#For those persons who don’t have the 260 channels offered by BTC, they can access their webpage www.btcbahamas.com/btctv and watch the live coverage or on your cellphones where they can watch FLOW TV as well.

#Also addressing the audience were Minister of Youth, Sports and Culture, Dr Daniel Johnson, who wished the team every success; Roy Colebrooke on the role that he ply as the chef de mission; Ralf McKinney as the team manager and Cora Hepburn, a vice president of the BOC, who will serve as the chaperon attache for the team in Rio.

#Here’s a look at the athletes selected to represent the Bahamas on the BTC Bahamas Olympic Games:

#Athletics

#Men – Trevor Barry (high jump); Shavez Hart (100/200m); Demetrius Pinder (200/4x400m relay); Chris ‘Fireman’ Brown (400m/4x400m relay); Michael Mathieu (4x400m relay); Jamal Wilson (high jump); Donald Thomas (high jump); Leevan ‘Superman’ Sands (triple jump); Stephen Newbold (4x400m relay); Jeffery Gibson (400m hurdles); Adrian Griffith (100/200m); Jamial Rolle (100m); Latario Collie-Minns (triple jump); Alonzo Russell (400m/4x400m relay); Steven Gardiner (400m/4x400m relay) and Teray Smith (200m).

#Women – TyNia Gaither (100/200m); Anthonique Strachan (200m); Sheniqua ‘Q’ Ferguson (200m); Shaunae Miller (100/200/400m); Bianca Stuart (long jump); Devynne Charlton (100m hurdles); Adanaca Brown (100m hurdles) and Pedrya Seymour (100m hurdles).

#Rowling

#Emily Morley (Women’s single sculls).

#Swimming

#Women – Arianna Vanderpool-Wallace (100m butterfly and 50/100m freestyle) and Joanna Evans (200, 400 and 800m freestyles).

#Men

#Dustin Tynes (100m breaststroke).

#Management team

#Chef de mission – Roy Colebrooke.

#BOC Assistants – Derron Donaldson and Darcy Rahming Sr.

#Manager – Ralf McKinney.

#Chaperone attache – Cora Hepburn.

#Swimming coaches – Lionel Moreau and Andrew Loveitt.

#Swimming team manager – Kathy Dillette.

#Swimming delegate – Algernon Cargill (president).

#Rowing coaches – Beth Robinson and Becky Greene.

#Athletics coaches – George Cleare (head coach), Debbie Ferguson-McKenzie, Rudy Ferguson, James Rolle, Tyrone Burrows and Shaun Miller.

#Athletics delegates – Rosamunde Carey (president), Iram Lewis, Clarence Rolle and Robert Butler.

#Medical – Dr Rickey Davis (head doctor); Jenn Davis (chiropractor), Cottrice Robinson (physio), Dwight Marshall, Dr Claussen and Kareen Sherwood-Wallace.

Friday, July 15, 2016

#By BRENT STUBBS

#Senior Sports Reporter

#bstubbs@tribunemedia.net

#SECRETARY General Romel ‘Fish’ Knowles said the Bahamas Olympic Committee is not quite yet ready to release the names of Team Bahamas going to Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, next month.

#While the deadline for athletes to quality was Sunday (July 11), Knowles said there are still a few more logistics that they have to deal with before they announce the team either Monday or Tuesday.

#“The president (Wellington Miller) is away and he won’t be back until tomorrow (today),” Knowles said. “So we are just waiting on him to return so that we can finalise the list.

#“But we are also waiting to see what happens with the Russian Olympic Committee, who is waiting on a court hearing. That will determine whether or not we will carry our women’s 4 x 400m relay team, which will increase the number of persons on the team.”

#Knowles, however, said the BOC has decided to ratify all of the athletes who would have done the qualifying standard, including former co-national women’s 100m hurdle record holders Adanaca Brown and Devynne Charlton, who are both nursing injuries.

#While Brown has not competed so far this year, Charlton ran indoors for Purdue University before she suffered a back injury that has forced her to shut down her outdoor season.

#Additionally, Knowles said the BOC is waiting on a progress report from Latario Collie, who won the NCAA outdoor men’s triple jump on his first jump. Collie was forced to watch the remainder of the competition after he suffered a slight injury that hampered him from competing at the Bahamas Association of Athletic Associations’ National Open Track and Field Championships.

#The BAAA held the Nationals in June at the Thomas A Robinson National Stadium, which served as a final trial for the Olympics. However, the IAAF has extended the deadline for athletes to qualify to Monday, July 11, following the completion of the USA and European trials that weekend.

#There were a few athletes whose names were submitted by the BAAA to the BOC for ratification. They competed in the Blue Marlin Track Classic on Independence Day to prove their fitness.

#Also at the meet on Sunday, the BAAA ran a women’s 4 x 400m, a women’s 4 x 100m and two men’s 4 x 100m teams to secure one of the remaining eight spots to complete the top 16 spots for Rio.

#The eight finalists in all four relays, including the men’s 4 x 400m, clinched their spots at the second IAAF World Relays that was held at the Thomas A. Robinson National Stadium last year.

#At the Blue Marlin Classic, the women’s 4 x 400m team of Lanece Clarke, Camiesha Cox, Christine Amertil and Shequania Dorsett won the women’s 4 x 400m relay over Trinidad & Tobago and Jamaica to move into the 16th and final spot.

#However, they will only be allowed to hold onto that position if Russia’s case in the Court of Arbitration for their suspension from the IAAF for doping violation by their country is not overturned.

#The quartet, along with Collie, joined the list of the following athletes and coaches submitted by the BAAA to the BOC for ratification.

#Ladies – Tynia Gaither, Sheniqua ‘Q’ Ferguson, Anthonique Strachan (100-200m), Shaunae Miller (200/400m), Pedrya Seymour (100m hurdles) and Bianca Stuart (long jump).

#Men – Adrian Griffith, Jamial Rolle, Shavez Hart (100/200m), Demetrius Pinder (200m/4 x 400m); Terey Smith (200m); Steven Gardiner, Christopher Brown, Alonzo Russell, Michael Mathieu (400/4 x 400m), Stephen Newbold (4 x 400m), Leevan ‘Superman’ Sands (triple jump), Jeffery Gibson (400m hurdles) and Donald Thomas, Jamal Wilson and Trevor Barry (high jump).

#Coaches – George Cleare (head coach), Rudolph Ferguson, Tyrone Burrows, Shaun Miller (assistant coaches), James Rolle (jumps) and Debbie Ferguson-McKenzie (female coach).

#Ralf McKinney is the team manager.

#BAAA’s president Rosamunde Carey was unable to confirm or deny the list submitted.

Tuesday, August 2, 2016

#By BRENT STUBBS

#Senior Sports Reporter

#bstubbs@tribunemedia.net

#HEAD coach George Cleare said he’s anticipating some outstanding performances from the 26 athletes selected to represent the BTC Bahamas Olympic Team in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

#If they perform up to his expectations, Cleare said the Bahamas could come back with at least four medals.

#A total of 30 athletes from three disciplines, rowing and swimming included, are either already in Rio or are en route to the games, according to Bahamas team manager Ralf McKinney.

#The majority of the track team left either New Providence or the United States on Monday and should arrive in Rio today.

#There are other track athletes who will be coming in before the games get started on Friday with the official opening ceremonies.

#However, he said the last two competitors, Jeffery Gibson and Trevor Barry, would be heading to Rio around August 10-11, just in time for the start of the athletic competition.

#“We sent our final arrival itinerary into the International Olympic Committee and our chef de mission Roy Colebrooke and the president Wellington Miller are already there, so they are just waiting on us to get there,” McKinney said.

#Barry, one of three high jumpers competing, came into town from North Dakota to go through some final training sessions with his personal coach Keith Parker, while hurdler Gibson will be spending the extra time to train with his personal coach in the United States.

#Looking at the team selected, Cleare said there is a good group of individuals on their way to Rio and he’s looking forward to everyone turning in their personal best performances.

#“If we can do that, I could see us easily being in contention for at least four medals,” he said.

#“But it’s a tough road and our job as a coaching staff is to get our athletes as comfortable as possible and physically and mentally prepared to get them to perform at their best at the games.”

#As for the medals, Cleare pointed out that he’s looking at the possibility of the men and women getting on the podium in the 400 metres; the men’s 4 x 400m relay and the men’s high jump.

#“But strength across the board, this is the Olympic Games and I don’t like to count medals because you don’t want to count out athletes,” he said. “When you have athletes like Bob Beamon, who did something crazy and was able to hold onto his long jump record for years.

#“So at the Olympic Games anything is possible and I’m looking for our athletes to do their personal best performances and rise to the occasion. We have some quarter-milers like Chris Brown and Steven Gardiner and we have Shaunae Miller, so we have some good prospects for medals.”

#The athletic team, which will be minus two women’s hurdlers Devynne Charlton and Adanaca Brown, will comprise of the following athletes:

#MEN – Trevor Barry (high jump); Shavez Hart (100/200m); Demetrius Pinder (200m/4x400m relay); Chris Brown (400m/4x400m relay); Michael Mathieu (4x400m relay); Jamal Wilson (high jump); Donald Thomas (high jump); Leevan Sands (triple jump); Stephen Newbold (4x 400m relay); Jeffery Gibson (400m hurdles); Adrian Griffith (100m); Jamial Rolle (100m); Latario Collie (triple jump); Alonzo Russell (400m/4x400m relay); Steven Gardiner (400m/4x400m relay) and Teray Smith (200m).

#Women – Tynia Gaither (100/200m); Anthonique Strachan (200m/4x400m relay); Sheniqua Ferguson (200m); Shaunae Miller (400m/4x400m relay); Bianca Stuart long jump); Pedrya Seymour (100m hurdles) and Lanece Clarke, Christine Amertil, Carmiesha Cox and Shaquania Dorsett (all in the 4x400m relay).

#They will join the one-woman rowing team of Emily Morley and the three-member swim team of Arianna Vanderpol-Wallace, Joanna Evan and Dustin Tynes, who should already in Rio. Morley will be entered in the women’s single sculls; Vanderpool-Wallace in the women’s 100m butterfly, 100m freestyle and 50m freestyle; Evans in the women’s 200m freestyle, 400m freestyle and 800m freestyle and Tynes in the men’s 100m breaststroke.

#The games will get started on Friday night at 7 pm. The swimming and rowing competition will start on Saturday, while the track and field competition commences on Friday, August 12.

#The games will close on Sunday, August 21.

Chris Brown, of the Bahamas, crosses the line in third place behind Jamaica’s Javon Francis and just ahead of Belgium’s Kevin Borlee in the men’s 4 x 400m relay final on Saturday night (AP)

Wednesday, August 24, 2016

#By RENALDO DORSETT

#Sports Reporter

#rdorsett@tribunemedia.net

#AFTER successfully leading the Bahamas’ men’s 4x400m relay team back to the medal podium at the Olympic Games, veteran quarter-miler Chris Brown said he looks forward to making an impact in the next phase of his career.

#Brown, 37, produced a split of 44.20 seconds on the anchor leg to lead the Bahamas to a bronze medal last week in a season’s best time of 2:58.49 alongside Alonzo Russell, Michael Mathieu and Steven Gardiner.

#“This is definitely the last time the Bahamas will see me run at the Olympic level,” he said. “I’m looking forward to starting a training camp, I’m looking forward to continuing putting on events in the Bahamas, I’m looking forward to coaching and just giving back to the Bahamas in a different chapter of my career.

#“I’m looking forward to it and just allowing God to do his work with me. For now, I’m going to take the rest of the season off, take time with my family and just relax.”

#The bronze medal in Rio was the fourth Olympic relay medal for the Bahamas men’s 4x400m team.Three of those teams featured Brown as the anchor. In Rio as the men’s team captain, he made his fifth Olympic appearance in a much different role from the team’s 2012 gold medal triumph in London with Mathieu, Demetrius Pinder and Ramon Miller when he ran the first leg of the race.

#In addition to leading off on the gold medal team in London, he also anchored the silver medal performance with Andretti Bain, Mathieu and Andrae Williams in Beijing, China in 2008 and anchored as well in Sydney, Australia in 2000 when he and Avard Moncur, Troy McIntosh and Carl Oliver clinched the first relay medal with the bronze.

#“To be able to take on any role is important because as the leader you have to be flexible with your space and time and also you have to be able to be comfortable with what you’re doing,” he said. “This year, just to be able to step up and bring the Bahamas a bronze medal was an accomplishment and I enjoyed running with my teammates and getting the job done.”

#Brown, the elder statesman of the team, rebounded after dropping to fourth on the back stretch on his last leg as he was passed by Jamaica’s Javon Francis as they trailed LaShawn Merritt from the United States and Gaone Leaname Maotoanono from Botswana.

#But as they came off the final curve and into the home stretch, Maotoanono stumbled with the pressure behind him as Francis reeled him in. Brown passed him as well and just as he got closer to the finish line, he managed to dip to avoid Kevin Borlee and Belgium denying the Bahamas the bronze.

#The medal, according to Brown, was dedicated to Demetrius Pinder, the only member in the relay pool who didn’t get to compete.

#Brown began his transition to meet promoter several years ago when he hosted the inaugural edition of the Chris Brown Bahamas Invitational.

#After logistics problems forced cancellation and a two-year hiatus, the meet returned to the Thomas A Robinson stadium last April.

#“The first year, we had about six individual medallists from the Olympics and the World Championship,” Brown said. “This year, we had about 27 current and former champions,” Brown said at the time of the event.

#This year’s meet included Kirani James from Grenada and American Jeremy Wariner along with American sprinters Justin Gatlin, Wallace Spearmon, Natasha Hastings and Tori Bowie, hurdler David Oliver, Jamaicans Veronica Campbell-Brown and Sherone Simpson and triple jumpers Christian Taylor and Will Claye.

#Bahamian athletes included Shaunae Miller and Steven Gardiner, triple jumper Leevan ‘Superman’ Sands, long jumper Bianca Stuart and high jumpers Donald Thomas, Trevor Barry, Ryan Ingraham and Jamal Wilson.

Monday, October 29, 2018

Chris Brown and Ryan Erlacher.

#By BRENT STUBBS

#Senior Sports Reporter

#bstubbs@tribunemedia.net

#CHRIS ‘The Fireman’ Brown, the country’s most decorated quarter-miler, has decided to step away from competing after an illustrious 20-year career and focus on his new challenge as an assistant coach at Clayton State in Morrow, Georgia.

#Brown, who resides in Atlanta with his wife Faith and their two daughters, was named to the team on Thursday by Ryan Erlacher, the athletic director, and will join the staff on the track team headed by Mike Mead.

#Having celebrated his 40th birthday on October 15, Brown becomes the latest Bahamian track athlete to make the transition, following national 100 metre record holder Derrick Atkins, who last month was named an assistant coach of Western Carolina Catamounts Track and Field, with a focus on sprints, hurdles and relays.

#A veteran of five Olympic Games, Brown steps into collegiate coaching for the first time following a tremendous international career. Over the course of his career that has spanned two decades, Brown has won medals world-wide but reached the apex of his career on the grandest stage of them all – the Olympic Games.

#At the age of 21, Brown got his international breakthrough at the 2000 Olympic Games in Sydney, Australia where he teamed with Avard Moncur, Troy McIntosh and Carl Oliver to clinch the bronze medal in the men’s 4 x 400 metre relay in a time of 2:59.23.

#Although he returned to compete in his second Olympics in Athens,Greece in 2004, it wasn’t until 2008 in Beijing, China where he got back on the podium with the silver with the combo of Andretti Bain, Michael Mathieu and Andrae Williams as they rang 2:58.03. At that same games, Brown had his best individual showing, coming in fourth in the men’s 400m.

#Four years later, Brown ascended to the top of the podium with the combo of Demetrius Pinder, Michael Mathieu and Ramon Miller for the gold in 2:56.72 in London, England. Then in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil in 2016, Brown and the team of Alonzo Russell, Michael Mathieu and Steven Gardiner had to settle for the bronze.

#Also in four appearances at the IAAF World Championships, Brown competed with different partners as the Bahamas won gold in Edmonton, Canada in 2001; silver twice in Helsinki, Finland in 2005 and Osaka,Japan in 2007 and a bronze in Paris, France in 2003.

#Brown’s best individual feats would have been achieved at the IAAF World Indoor Championships where he was crowned champion in 2010 in Doha, Qatar; silver in 2014 in Sopot, Poland and three silver medals in Moscow, Russia in 2006, Valencia, Spain in 2008 and Istanbul, Turkey in 2012.

#At the Commonwealth Games, Brown would have secured silver in Glasgow, Scotland in 2014 on the men’s 4 x 400m team and bronze in Manchester, England in 2002. In Rio de Janeiro, Brazil in 2007 at the Pan Am Games, Brown captured gold in the men’s 400 and was a part of the men’s 4 x 400m team that was also victorious.

#And at the Central American and Caribbean Championships, Brown also ran on the winning men’s 4 x 400m relay teams in St George’s, Grenada in 2003 and here at home in 2005. He was also a 400m silver and bronze medalists respectively.

#When he got his international career started, Brown made his debut at the Carifta Games in 1997 in Bridgetown, Barbados where he claimed the bronze in both the 400 and 800m as a native from Wemyss Bight, Eleuthera making his transition to New Providence where he attended RM Bailey High.

#Brown, who would also produce a pair of silver medals on the men’s 4 x 400m relays at the IAAF World Championships here in 2014 and 2015, is a graduate of Norfolk State University. The former Bahamas national 400m record holder with a personal best of 44.40, currently holds the national records of 15.10 in the 150m, 31.99 in the 300m and 1:49.54 in the 800m.

#While still competing, Brown showed his versatility by hosting two successful versions of the Chris Brown Invitational in 2013 and 2016. After the third edition in 2017 was cancelled, he was contracted as a consultant and athletes’ liaison for the inaugural Grenada Invitational that was held at the National Athletic Stadium in St George’s on April 8, 2017.

#Although he has not yet officially announced his retirement from competing, Brown is pressing on with his new role as an assistant coach at Clayton State, whose nickname is the Lakers. They are a NCAA Division II school that competes in the Peach Belt Conference.