Territories and dependencies not recognised by the International Olympic Committee (IOC), including Martinique, Guadeloupe and the Turks and Caicos Islands, are set to compete at the 2018 Central American and Caribbean Games (CAC) following a landmark amendment passed at the CAC General Assembly.
A total of 31 nations are participating in the current edition of the world's oldest still-running regional Games which began in the Mexican city Veracruz last Friday (November 14), including Colombia, Venezuela, Suriname and Guyana from South America.
All are also members of the IOC.
In contrast, the new amendment means territories that are not "countries" within the meaning of the IOC or do not have a National Olympic Committees recognised by the IOC can become "associate members" and so participate in the CAC Games.
This will be subject to a number of requirements, insidethegames has learned, the primary one being that a country must have at least five National Federations affiliated to their respective International Federation.
But it could potentially mean participation for the first time at the next edition of the Games, due to take place in Barranquilla, Colombia, in 2018.
The amendment was proposed by Haiti following legal studies and backing from the IOC, with support from St. Lucia, Aruba and Suriname, before unanimous support from all delegates present.
Representatives from the two French overseas territories of Guadeloupe and Martinique were invited to the General Assembly, with Guadeloupe Regional Olympic and Sports Committee (CROS) President Alain Soreze describing the decision as a "historic opportunity" that should pave the way for recognition from other bodies.
"Guadeloupe will follow the formal procedures for this membership, also the CROS of Guadeloupe will have to adapt its operation and management, as well as all the leagues, committees and other sport stakeholders," he said.
"We will have to change software to better train, and better prepare target podiums.
"This inclusion is a historic opportunity for the development of sport in Guadeloupe."
The island, like others set to benefit from the amendment, has already participated in regional competitions in other sports including in football, where the men's national team reached the semi-final of the 2007 CONCACAF Cup in the United States, and finished second in the 2010 Caribbean Cup, the final round of which was held in Martinique.
Others who could potentially benefit from the amendment are Dutch constituents Sint Maarten and Curaçao and British overseas territories Anguilla and Montserrat.
Anguilla and Montserrat already compete in the Commonwealth Games but their athletes have to represent Britain in the Olympics.
The amendment is another boost for new countries and territories seeking recognition within the Olympic Movement, with participation in the Olympic Games a long term and eventual goal.
It follows the decision by the IOC Executive Board last month to provisionally recognise Kosovo subject to ratification by the full membership.
Warner, Bin Hammam named in FIFA probe
Although FIFA Ethics judge Hans-Joachim Eckert’s findings named both former FIFA vice-president Jack Warner and former Asian confederation president Mohammed Bin Hammam as having contravened rules regarding payments, FIFA president Sepp Blatter has stated that the investigation into 2018 and 2022 World Cup bidding is closed.
In his findings released last week, Eckert, tasked with reporting on the investigation into those bidding processes conducted by chairman of the investigatory chamber of the FIFA Ethics Committee, Michael Garcia, named Warner and Bin Hammam as having contravened rules regarding payments, according to newpaper reports out of the UK.
Warner, a former UNC chairman and minster in various portfolios in the Trinidad and Tobago Government, resigned from FIFA in 2011, while Qatar’s Bin Hammam was banned for life by FIFA. Both are former FIFA ethics committee members.
But FIFA has lodged a criminal complaint with the Swiss attorney general over “suspected unlawful activity” of unnamed individuals connected with the bidding contests despite Blatter’s statement that the investigation is concluded.
The report, handed over to the Swiss prosecutors by Eckert as part of his findings into the Garcia investigation, will not be published, Blatter had said, citing the publication would breach FIFA and state laws.
“The matter will now also be looked at by an independent, state body, which shows that FIFA is not opposed to transparency,” Blatter was reported to have said.
A FIFA statement said: “The subject of the criminal complaint is the possible misconduct of individual persons in connection with the awarding of the hosting rights of the 2018 and 2022 World Cups investigated by Michael Garcia.
“In particular there seem to be grounds for suspicion that, in isolated cases, international transfers of assets with connections to Switzerland took place, which merit examination by the criminal prosecution authorities.”
The identities of the individuals who have been reported to the attorney general have not been disclosed, according to the UK media report.
CAC medal tally at 4
Browne, Alexander, St Louis, Humphreys cop more bronze for T&T
Dorian Alexander fought his way to secure T&T’s second bronze medal, when he defeated Costa Rica’s Carlos Solis in the quarterfinals of the Men’s Under 68kg Taekwondo, at the Central American and Caribbean (CAC) Games in Veracruz, Mexico.
Though he trailed 1-2 in the first round, Alexander took control over his Central American opponent from the next round by outscoring his opponent 5-1 before winning the third, 6-2, with several single point offensive kicks to Solis’s body. Solis actually did not score any points for the entire fight, only gain points off Alexander’s eight Kyong-gos (warning penalty, in Taekwondo two Kyong-go’s committed awards the opposition a point).
It was a different story for Alexander against Mexico’s Isaac Torres, scoring his only point of the fight in the first round. Torres executed two impressive back kicks as Alexander eventually lost 12-1. Torres went on to take silver, losing to Dominican Republic’s Ruddy Mateo 10-8 in the finals.
Meanwhile, cyclist Kwesi Browne added a third bronze to T&T’s medal tally when he copped third spot in the men’s Keirin late on Tuesday. Colombia’s Fabiano Hernando Puerta copped the gold while Hersony Canelon of Venezuela bagged silver.
Varun Maharajh topped the field in the men’s omnium scratch before going on to record a time of four minutes, 41.024 seconds for the fourth fastest time in the individual pursuit. He was carded to ride in the Elimination event at 8.00 p.m. while Emile Abraham was in the lineup for the men’s points race at 7.00 p.m.
And the table tennis pair of Dexter St Louis and Curtis Humphreys earned men’s doubles bronze after they were beaten 6-11, 7-11, 9-11, by Puerto Rico’s Brian Afanadour and Daniel Gonzalez in their semi-final matchup. The Puerto Ricans had to eventually settle for silver after they were defeated 12-10, 8-11, 6-11, 9-11, in the championship match by Marcos Madrid and Salvador Uribe of Mexico.
In women’s round of 16 singles action, Ashley Quashie bowed out to Puerto Rico’s Daniely Rios, 7-11, 5-11, 5-11, 6-11, while Rheann Chung won a tough five-set duel with Analdy Lopez of Guatemala by a 4-1 margin to progress to the final eight. Chung prevailed 12-10, 4-11, 11-6, 13-11, and 14-12.
In hockey action, T&T’s women had to settle for a 2-2 draw against the Dominican Republic (DR) after Blair Wynne had given them the lead in the sixth minute. Two goals in the eighth and 20th minutes by Benifer Moronta saw the DR forge ahead but Alanna Lewis hit back with a 31st minute strike to grab a share of the points for T&T.
And in the pool, George Bovell splashed into the final of the men’s 50m backstroke when he finished second in heat two in a time of 26.65 seconds with Venezuela’s Molina Robinson winning in 26.33. David McLeod, despite finishing fourth in heat one in 26.81, earned a lane in the final as he produced the sixth faster qualifying time.
The national women’s basketball team were beaten 86-36 by Cuba with Afeisha Noel, 10 and Patrice Edwards, nine, were T&T top scorers while at press time the women’s footballers were down by a 6-0 scoreline to Mexico.
ToolsCAC medal tally at 4Browne, Alexander, St Louis, Humphreys cop more bronze for T&TDorian Alexander fought his way to secure T&T’s second bronze medal, when he defeated Costa Rica’s Carlos Solis in the quarterfinals of the Men’s Under 68kg Taekwondo, at the Central American and Caribbean (CAC) Games in Veracruz, Mexico. Though he trailed 1-2 in the first round, Alexander took control over his Central American opponent from the next round by outscoring his opponent 5-1 before winning the third, 6-2, with several single point offensive kicks to Solis’s body. Solis actually did not score any points for the entire fight, only gain points off Alexander’s eight Kyong-gos (warning penalty, in Taekwondo two Kyong-go’s committed awards the opposition a point).
It was a different story for Alexander against Mexico’s Isaac Torres, scoring his only point of the fight in the first round. Torres executed two impressive back kicks as Alexander eventually lost 12-1. Torres went on to take silver, losing to Dominican Republic’s Ruddy Mateo 10-8 in the finals.
Meanwhile, cyclist Kwesi Browne added a third bronze to T&T’s medal tally when he copped third spot in the men’s Keirin late on Tuesday. Colombia’s Fabiano Hernando Puerta copped the gold while Hersony Canelon of Venezuela bagged silver.
Varun Maharajh topped the field in the men’s omnium scratch before going on to record a time of four minutes, 41.024 seconds for the fourth fastest time in the individual pursuit. He was carded to ride in the Elimination event at 8.00 p.m. while Emile Abraham was in the lineup for the men’s points race at 7.00 p.m.
And the table tennis pair of Dexter St Louis and Curtis Humphreys earned men’s doubles bronze after they were beaten 6-11, 7-11, 9-11, by Puerto Rico’s Brian Afanadour and Daniel Gonzalez in their semi-final matchup. The Puerto Ricans had to eventually settle for silver after they were defeated 12-10, 8-11, 6-11, 9-11, in the championship match by Marcos Madrid and Salvador Uribe of Mexico.
In women’s round of 16 singles action, Ashley Quashie bowed out to Puerto Rico’s Daniely Rios, 7-11, 5-11, 5-11, 6-11, while Rheann Chung won a tough five-set duel with Analdy Lopez of Guatemala by a 4-1 margin to progress to the final eight. Chung prevailed 12-10, 4-11, 11-6, 13-11, and 14-12.
In hockey action, T&T’s women had to settle for a 2-2 draw against the Dominican Republic (DR) after Blair Wynne had given them the lead in the sixth minute. Two goals in the eighth and 20th minutes by Benifer Moronta saw the DR forge ahead but Alanna Lewis hit back with a 31st minute strike to grab a share of the points for T&T.
And in the pool, George Bovell splashed into the final of the men’s 50m backstroke when he finished second in heat two in a time of 26.65 seconds with Venezuela’s Molina Robinson winning in 26.33. David McLeod, despite finishing fourth in heat one in 26.81, earned a lane in the final as he produced the sixth faster qualifying time.
The national women’s basketball team were beaten 86-36 by Cuba with Afeisha Noel, 10 and Patrice Edwards, nine, were T&T top scorers while at press time the women’s footballers were down by a 6-0 scoreline to Mexico.
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SporTT makes inroads at World Market
In an effort to bring more athletes and fans to our shores, the Sport Company of T&T (SporTT) sent two officials to the recently held World Market in London.
A mission from T&T organised by the Ministry of Tourism left these shores for the event and CEO of SporTT, Adrian Raymond saw it as an opportunity to advertise this country’s sports facilities, as well as gain valuable information on operating systems for the mega facilities currently under construction.
Representing SporTT were Kyron Serette and Natasha Nunez. Serette speaking on the Sports Drive on Heritage Radio said: “This was a fantastic opportunity for us to take part in the world market. What we found is that people normally view us here in the Caribbean as just a holiday destination but we were able to get to officials from many of the participating countries to let them know that we have a lot to offer.”
Nunez who is a communications officer at SporTT said: “A number of them were surprised to know that we have these great facilities on hand. Now teams can come here for camps ahead of major world events and this is what we are focussing on. So it is not just about having teams coming here for competitions.
“We have world class facilities under construction at the moment and are due to be completed soon.
“Sporting associations around the world can now send their teams to our country and in addition to having great weather for training, they can also enjoy the wonderful facilities and the added on is of course our lovely beaches. The people in our country are also warm and open and this is something we need to allow them to know as well.”
Both Nunez and Serette also took the opportunity to move away from the proceedings of the World Market and visit many places of interest, in terms of sport development.
According to Serette: “We visited SPORT England and whilst there, we were able to get very valuable information in terms of sport development and facility management.
“We have the Aquatic Centre, the Cycling Velodrome, the Tennis Centre and many other smaller facilities that can be used by international athletes. We were able to bring back information that could be used to enhance the facilties.
“For instance, when we visited the English Cycling Centre we noticed simple things that we did not know, like making sure the doors to the facility opened outwards.
“By doing this the cyclists are not affected by the air moving in and out of the building. Then there are other aspects of design that might be costly right now but is something we can implement as we go along.”
Nunez was particularly impressed with the Swimming arena in London, saying: “They had adjustable floors in their diving pools and practice pools, so they could have easily varied the depth of the pool. We were lucky to witness these things because now we can assist by giving this information to our technical people.”
Serette ended by saying that all this information gained could come to nothing with follow up and they have since been in contact with all the officials, they met since their arrival home and they have promised to open bi-lateral communication for all concerned.
Doubles men stop D/Republic
The T&T contingent displayed top performances in table tennis and swimming as action continued yesterday at the Central American and Caribbean Games (CAC) in Veracruz, Mexico.
Table-Tennis
At the Omega Complex in the men’s doubles last-eight, T&T pair Curtis Humphreys and Dexter St Louis dumped David Vila and Isaac Vila of Dominican Republic 12-10, 11-9, 11-8 and come up against Mexicans, Guillermo Munoz and Ricardo Villa who defeated Venezuelans, Luis Diaz and Marco Navas 6-11, 11-6, 12-10, 11-1 in the semifinals.
In the women’s doubles, T&T duo Rheann Chung and Ashley Quashie were stopped by Venezuelans Gremlis Arvelo and Roxy Gonzalez 6-11, 9-11, 9-11 in their last-eight encounter. Last night in the mixed doubles, Humphreys and Quashie faced Jamaicans Simon Tomlinson and Yvonne Foster, while Aaron Wilson and Catherine Spicer battled the Dominican Republic pair of Isaac Vila and Johenny Valdez in the round-of-32.
On Monday in the women’s singles Chung defeated Karla Britto of Dominican Republic 11-5, 11-4, 11-7 and Guatemala’s Andrea Montoya 11-3, 11-8, 11-6 in Group Five; Quashie went under to Puerto Rican Melanie Diaz 5-11, 5-11, 2-11 but was then awarded a walkover win against Barbadian Angela Reid in Group Nine.
Venezuelan Wimberly Montero stopped T&T’s Spicer 11-5, 11-8, 7-11, 11-9 while the latter was also beaten by Cuban Idalys Lovet 5-11, 3-11, 4-11 in Group 13.
And in the men’s singles St Louis was upstaged in his opener by Cuban Jorge Campos 5-11, 6-11, 7-11 before beating El Salvador’s Erick Avilez 6-11, 11-3, 13-11, 11-1 in Group Three; teenager Aaron Wilson beat Jamaican Michael Hyatt 7-11, 4-11, 11-5, 11-9, 11-5 before losing to Cuban Yohan Morra 5-11, 11-1, 5-11 in Group Eight; and in Group 12, Guatemala’s Hector Gatica defeated Humphreys 11-7, 11-3, 11-6 while the latter humbled Honduran Miguel Sarmiento 11-2, 11-7, 11-9.
Boating
On Monday in Boating at the Tuxpan River, T&T’s Satyam Maharaj was seventh in the men’s KI 200m final with a 1:00.998 clocking while Keian Huggins placed sixth in the women’s final, with a 1:11.242 timing.
Shooting
Roger Daniel got bronze in the men’s 10m Air Pistol final with 175.8 points behind Cuban gold medalist Jorge Grau (201.1) and Mexican Maurilio Morales who took silver with 196.8.
In the morning qualifying session, Daniel also had the third best tally from his six sectors with 570 point to trail Grau (573) and Morales (571) while T&T’s two other competitors, Rodney Allen (545) and Clement Marshall (527) were 22nd and 31st overall.
And in the Men’s 10m Air Pistol Team competition, the trio of Daniel, Allen and Marshall combined for 1,642 points for sixth spot while in the women’s individual compound archery competition, Neela Cezair was 19th with 631 points.
Swimming
Over at the Leyes de Reforma Aquatic Centre, swimmer, Abraham Mc Leod qualified for the men’s 50m breaststroke final which was also contested last night, after he was second in 28.92 behind Venezuelan Carlos Clavarie (28.84) in their heat while his brother Joshua Mc Leod contested the men’s 50m butterfly final from lane two.
Volleyball
At the Cordoba Sports Arena, Willis sisters, Angela and Verania closed with 20 and 16 points, respectively to lead Costa Rica women over T&T, 25-19, 25-19, 25-14 in their final round-robin volleyball match.
For T&T, Channon Thompson and Sinead Jack finished with seven points each in the third loss from as many matches while they will next the loser fo one of the two quarterfinals, featuring Mexico/Colombia and Cuba/Costa Rica.
Puerto Rico defeated Mexico and clinched their second victory 25-17, 22-25, 27-25, 25-20 to advance straight to the semifinals as group winners while in Pool A defending champions Dominican Republic closed the pool phase undefeated after beating Cuba 25-20, 25-19, 25-19 to earn the automatic semifinal spot from the group while Colombia overcame Venezuela 25-22, 26-24, 25-23.
Cycling
In men’s kierin round one action yesterday, T&T cyclist Kwesi Browne came second in heat three to advance to the next round. Another T&T rider Jude Codrington was eliminated from contention, after not finishing heat two. He had a second chance to qualify for the next round, but did not start the round one repechage.
On Monday, Browne, Codrington and Quincy Alexander finished fifth overall in the men’s team sprint.
Today at the Leyes de Reforma Aquatic Centre, Wednesday, 31-year-old Bovell III who recently ended another successful FINA/Mastbank World Cup season and is the two-time defending champions in the men’s 50m freestyle having won the last two events in Mayaguez, Puerto Rico (2010) and 2006 in Cartagena, Colombia will get gold medal campaign off and running when he lines up in heat two of the men’s 50m backstroke while compatriot David Mc Leod goes in heat one, and Joshua Mc Leod, heat one of the men’s 100m butterfly. Bovell is also expected to spearhead the men’s 4 x 100m freestyle quartet in their final tonight.
In Archery, the trio of George Viree, Hasmath Alo and Amrit Siew both competed in the men’s individual compound as well as the team competition while the national women’s hockey team tackle Dominican Republic at the High Performance Centre, the Women’s Soca Warriors face Mexico in a rematch of their Concacaf Women’s World Cup third place match at Hugo Sanchez Sports Complex.
Basketball
T&T’s senior women’s basketball team will be seeking to improve on its seventh placed finish four years ago, when coach Christopher Jackson Charles’ team opens its account at the 2014 Central America and Caribbean Games (CAC), today, against Cuba.
T&T and Cuba will meet from 2.30 pm (TT time) at the Benito Juarez Auditorium, Veracruz, following the Group B opener between Jamaica and 2010 CAC silver medal team, the Dominican Republic. Group A action will follow at the same venue, at 8 pm, when Costa Rica and defending CAC basketball champion Puerto Rico meet. Host team Mexico and El Salvador will meet in the final match of the day.
Following today’s action, T&T will face the Dominican Republic tomorrow from 2.30 pm and Jamaica on Friday, from midday. The qualification rounds and semifinals will be played on Saturday, followed by the place matches and the final on Sunday.
The men’s tournament featuring Panama, the Dominican Republic, Puerto Rico, Jamaica, Mexico and Costa Rica will start on Monday and end on November 28.
T&T’s squad for the tournament includes the late additions of Alison Young and Tobago pair Aniecia Baptiste and Dourciel Moore, who have replaced unavailable players, Melissa Guerero, Shakira Clarke and Alicia Liverpool.
The other players include Rhea Codio, Jowan Ortega, Jenelle Richardson, Kielle Connelly, Alicia Cumberbatch, Samantha Wallace, Trecha Jackson-Kennedy, Patrice Edwards, and Afeisha Noel. The support staff include, Arnold Thomas (manager), Shawn Ryan (asst coach) and Claire Mitchell (official).
Initially, T&T failed to qualify for the CAC Games after finishing fourth at the CBC Championships in July. However, the US Virgin Islands, which originally qualified, pulled out of the tournament, opening an invitation for T&T to participate.
Football
With each team on one point, T&T can take a shock lead in Group A of the Central America and Caribbean (CAC) women’s football tournament, today, with a shock win over host team Mexico, when the two teams meet in their second fixture.
The two teams will kick off at 5 pm kickoff at the Estadio Unidad Deportiva Hugo Sanchez, Greater Veracruz, following a Group A double-header opener between Colombia and Haiti.
All four teams are equal in the standings after two 1-1 draws on Monday evening.
In its opener against Haiti, T&T came from a goal down in the first half to seal a draw thanks to a 51st minute goal from Patrice Campbell.
The second fixture on the night saw Mexico steal a point after canceling a first half Colombian goal with an equalizer in the fifth minute of time added on in the second half.
Mexico’s goal was scored by Veronica Corral, the same player who scored two goals in extra time against T&T last month at the Concacaf Women’s Championships, to boot the “Women’s Soca Warriors” into the third-place playoff.
T&T fall to Jamaica in CFU Caribbean Cup finals
T&T’s senior men’s football team narrowly missed its chance to claim a ninth CFU Caribbean Cup crown, losing to Jamaica 4-3 in a penalty shoot-out.
Shot-stopper Jan Michael Williams, after an overall commanding performance, made one save for T&T in the shoot-out in Montego Bay, Jamaica. The scrappy affair saw T&T fail to test the Jamaican goalkeeper for 120-plus minutes on Tuesday night.
Their victory guarantees the Reggae Boyz a berth in the 2016 Copa America Centenario, in addition to the 2015 Concacaf Gold Cup place they earned by making the Caribbean Cup final four.
In June 2015, Jamaica and Trinidad & Tobago will be joined by Cuba and Haiti in the Gold Cup in the US. Fifth-placed French Guiana will face Honduras for the remaining spot up for grabs.
The Gold Cup will also give the Soca Warriors' head coach Stephen Hart another chance at qualification for the special 100th anniversary edition of the Copa América South American championships, a unique tournament which will see six Concacaf teams taking part alongside their South American counterparts.
T&T line up: Jan-Michael Williams, Joevin Jones, Daneil Cyrus, Aubrey David, Justin Hoyte, Andre Boucaud (Kevan George 105th), Khaleem Hyland, Hughtun Hector (Ataulla Guerra 82nd), Lester Peltier (Cordell Cato 67th), Kevin Molino, Kenwyne Jones.