Home|Sports|BOC elections set for this SaturdaySports
Sheldon LongleySend an emailSeptember 13, 2023 67 3 minute readFacebookTwitterLinkedInShare via Email
The positions of president and secretary general for this Saturday’s Bahamas Olympic Committee (BOC) election of officers will be unopposed, and the incumbents will be returned to office, but there are 17 running for six vice president spots that could change the look of the executive body.
The BOC elections is set for Saturday at 7 p.m. inside the Paul Farquharson Building at the Royal Bahamas Police Headquarters.
Romell Knowles is once again running for president and his running mate Derron Donaldson will once again contest the secretary general position. Both are running unopposed. Dorian Roach is also running unopposed, contesting the treasurer’s position. Jennifer Isaacs Dotson, Catherine Ramsingh-Pierre and Oria Wood-Knowles are running for the assistant secretary general’s position. Isaacs Dotson, Adam Waterhouse and Vincent Strachan will contest the assistant treasurer’s position.
The positions for vice president are always the most hotly contested at the BOC elections and this year is no different. Running for six positions are Gina Rolle from golf, Robert Butler from taekwondo, Drumeco Archer from athletics, Brian Cleare and Moses Johnson from basketball, Joseph Smith from volleyball, Algernon Cargill from swimming, Theodore Sweeting and Shane Albury from baseball, Cora Hepburn from gymnastics, Ramsingh-Pierre from equestrian, Sean Bastian from
handball, Clarence Rolle from wrestling, Lori Roach from triathlon, Roy Colebrook from cycling, Vincent Strachan from boxing and D’Arcy Rahming Sr. from judo.
As it relates to athletics, Archer has received an overwhelming amount of support from the track and field community and was given the blessing of the executive board of the Bahamas Association of Athletic Associations (BAAA) over the weekend. He is currently in his second term as BAAA president.
With four from athletics running for vice president spots at the last BOC elections, the vote was split and none of the four were able to get elected. This time, Archer is the only member of the track and field community running for a position on the BOC executive board.
For years, athletics has been the most represented sport for The Bahamas at the highest level of sport in the world – the Olympics. The last Olympics in Tokyo, Japan, was no different as 13 of the 15 members of Team Bahamas were from athletics. The other two were swimmers.
Given that backdrop, and with the continued success of Bahamian athletics regionally, internationally and worldwide, Archer said it’s imperative that the sport gets some representation on the board of the governing body of Olympic sports in the country.
Be that as it may, Donaldson said he feels confident that the current executive team has done enough to be re-elected.
“We know what we have to offer. There is a lot of work to be done – everyone has a job to do, but it is up to the members to repose confidence in the current executive team,” said Donaldson. “Everyone feels that they have done a good job but that is up to the members to decide.”
Donaldson said he is pleased that there was no infighting in the last administration, and that they all got along, for the most part.
“We feel like we have done a lot over the years to be re-elected, but it’s not about us. It’s about doing the work of the BOC and having the members judge you on your performance,” said Donaldson. “This is a very busy time for the executive team. Olympic sports are still reeling from COVID. The last Olympics was pushed back and that caused a lot of the major games to be crammed up. Right now, we are in the midst of planning for the Pan Am Games and that is a lot of work. Also, it is a very expensive undertaking.
“We just have to continue being out there and continue branding as we get closer to the Olympics. We have to bring the brand to the public and be more engaging. Also, we have to try and work on the federations more, with the understanding that they have to sit with us and bring their strategic plans to the table, in order for us help. We have to get the federations to be more active and be more self dependent.”
Donaldson said that with them going into an Olympic year in 2024, the planning process must start now, and it will be up to the new executive team to put everything in place pertaining to Team Bahamas for the Olympics.
The 2024 Summer Olympics, officially the Games of the 33rd Olympiad, is set for July 26 to August 11, in Paris, France.