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"More Cricket in St. Lucia" Says NCA President
(1 March 2000) - Senior police officer Hermangild Francis, recently installed as president of the National Cricket Association last Saturday, says that his executive will be seeking to rebuild the game in St. Lucia. The executive, which includes businessman Trevor Phillip and lawyer Sylvester Anthony, met for the first time earlier this week.
Francis told St. Lucia Online Sports Bulletin that the Association has already spoken with the sponsors of the domestic inter-district competition. The Piton Beer tournament is likely to begin on 18 March, but Francis explains that whereas there will not be any radical changes in the competition this year, he's hoping that local players will be able to get in some more cricket under their belts.
"One of the things we'd like to do with the Piton Beer competition is that we want to play matches over three days instead of two, with a limited overs match on the fourth day," revealed Francis. "We've got great players like Alton Crafton, John Eugene, Danny Harris - they need to get accustomed to staying at the crease and playing for a long time." The biennial General Meeting of the National Cricket Association will be concluded on 11 March at the Gros Islet Community Centre.
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Zeph Ready to Mount 10K Record Challenge
(1 March 2000) - Talented distance runner Zepherinus Joseph won the ten thousand metre run at a recent meet in Phoenix Arizona. Competing for Central Arizona College the 24-year old, originally from Mon Repos, completed the race in 31 minutes 27 seconds, well outside both the ten-year old national record of 31:8 (Anthony Fessal) and his personal record of 31:11. Still, Zeph is pleased to have had such a good outing so early in the year. In the process of taking the gold medal, Joseph qualified for the National Junior College Indoor Championships.
This year, Zepherinus could make an assault on all three national distance records as maintained by the Amateur Athletics Association. He already holds the 1500m and 5000m records, having reset each at least twice in the past twenty-four months. He once said that he would stick with the "shorter" races instead of chasing the 10K record, but his current form suggests that he could stick the triple. Dominic Johnson is the only man who currently holds three individual national track and field records, with marks in the pole vault, decathlon and heptathlon.
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Entrepot Tops Independence Inter-School Road Race
(1 March 2000) - The Physical Education Unit in the Department of Youth and Sports held the Inter-Secondary Schools Independence Road Race Tuesday. The race was contested on a course of approximately 8km, beginning and ending at the Corinth Secondary School. 150 students from 14 schools took part in the race, which began at 9.30am.
Nolan Duncan (Entrepot Secondary) won the race, finishing in 28 minutes. Rock Hall alumni took the other podium finishes. Charlery Leonce, now of the Centre for Adolescent Rehabilitation and Education (CARE) came in second; Jonathan St. Brice of Corinth Secondary was third.
Also representing the Entrepot Secondary School, reigning NCB/SLDB Games 1500 metre champion Mina Philip was the first girl to complete the road race, ending in 32 minutes. Myrna Ernest and Euclena St Toute, both from Corinth Secondary, were second and third respectively.
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Question Marks for St. Lucia Ahead of World Cup Qualifier
(1 March 2000) - This Sunday at the Mindoo Philip Park the senior national football team plays the first leg of a home and away Caribbean Zone qualifying tie for the 2002 World Cup. One is uncertain what to think of this team, especially minus three key players: Warren Hackett, Earl "Ball Hog" Jean and Titus "Titi" Elva.
The availability of Elva from Caledonian AIA in the Trinidad Professional Football League had been in doubt for weeks due to a thigh injury. Jean recently moved to Hibernian in the Scottish Premier League, and was unable to secure his release. The two strikers will perhaps be far easier to replace than will Hackett. A fine central defender, he would have been guaranteed a place in the team. For personal reasons, he'll be absent for the time being. Francis Lastic will perforce command the heart of the defense, Nigel James will be his most likely partner. Edwin Lawrence and Rene Regis appear to be set as the starting fullbacks.
Lawrence (aka Ferdinand) and Regis will add an attacking dimension to the defense, but without Hackett to watch his back Lastic will be unable to contribute as much as he would like to. Sommers Augustin is a defensive-minded central midfielder, but as a unit the back five will be poorer for the absence of one man. St. Lucia's defensive frailties are compounded by a confounding situation in goal. Danny Mitchel has been impressive albeit inconsistent, while Andrew Lashley has been steady but not excellent. The FA has resorted to recalling Abraham Mentor as a reserve; Mentor still plays club football, but as a forward, not as a keeper.
Things are happier in the midfield, which will be supported in the first instance by Regis, Lawrence and Augustin. Eric Fanis ought to get the call to go wide left; Ricardo Blanchard is well suited to hold the opposite flank; Elijah Joseph covers the entire field - he'll anchor the midfield, with Sheldon Mark in reserve. Up front, Ball Hog's absence opens the way for Ken Charlery and Footballer of the Year Emerson Jn Marie to work together. Both men are comfortable bringing the ball from deep and exercising their creativity, which ought to be a bonus. Jonathan McVane and Valencius Joseph will probably get into the game at some stage.
The full national squad reads as follows:
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G
G
G
D
D
D
D
D
D
D
M
M
M
M
M
M
F
F
F
F
F |
Danny Mitchel
Abraham Mentor
Andrew Lashley
Francis Lastic
Nigel James
Timothy George
Angus Williams
Rene Regis
Cletus Dolor
Junior Samuel
Ricardo Blanchard
Edwin Lawrence
Elijah Joseph
Alvin Xavier
Sheldon Mark
Sommers Augustin
Jonathan McVane
Ken Charlery
Eric Fanis
Valencius Joseph
Emerson Jn Marie |
Mabouya
Juventus
Square United
W Connection (Trinidad)
Nyabinghi
Roots Alley Ballers
DCYO
Mabouya
Nyabinghi
Pioneers
Long Island Roughriders (USA)
Bethany College (USA)
W Connection (Trinidad)
W Connection (Trinidad)
Caledonian AIA (Trinidad)
Pioneers
W Connection (Trinidad)
Barnet (England)
SC Nord Club (Romania)
W Connection (Trinidad)
Caledonian AIA (Trinidad) |
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Terry Finisterre wins Sports Award
AAA Takes It All At '99 Sports Awards
  (20 February 2000) - It was a clean sweep for the Amateur Athletics Association Saturday night in the National Cultural Centre; the AAA won the five most coveted awards at the 1999 Sports Awards Ceremony. First was Association of the Year, following on from the AAA's fifth place finish at the Central American and Caribbean Track and Field Championships, and their participation at the Pan-American and the World Championships. More than a dozen track and field records were set last year and the Association also staged a fair number of domestic events.
Two success stories from 1999 were Laverne Spencer and Damian Henville. Spencer, a student at the Entrepot Secondary School, took the eight-year old national high jump record in May, then she broke the high jump record for the Windward Islands Games. Those two feats earned her the title for most outstanding track and field athlete of the year, the merest prelude to her coronation as the 1999 Junior Sportswoman of the Year.
Henville earned the junior male track and field athlete of the year title, excelling as an individual sprinter but making his mark in the relays. Damian won the 4x100m relay at the NCB/SLDB Games with the Mercury Track Club, breaking the junior national record in the process. He joined the national 4x1 team for the Pan-am Games, and they duly made the finals and set a new senior national record. Parallel to Laverne, Damian was named Junior Sportsman of the Year.
At that stage, the suspense was all but gone. Verneta Lesforis, (pictured above) a senior at Southwest Missouri State University, was named Sportswoman of the Year. She helped set up St. Lucia's CAC achievements with her unprecedented gold medal in the 400m dash. In winning one of two international outings and setting a new national record, Verneta beat out St. Lucia and West Indies women's cricket captain Verena Felicien.
There were really only two men up for Sportsman of the Year. Emerson Jn Marie's amazing goal-scoring feats made him Footballer of the Year. Dominic Johnson's (pictured above) gold medal in the CAC pole vault, his CAC pole vault record, his award as Most Outstanding Male Athlete at CAC, his shared national 4x1 record and his ranking as the 25th best pole vaulter in the world convinced the judges that the Arizona-based 25-year old ought to bring home the trophy.
Special recognition went to the national women's volleyball team, which won the Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS) title in St. Vincent and the Grenadines; and the women's cricket team, which won the Caribbean championship and sent six players to the West Indies side. Media personalities McNaughton McLean (DBS) Brian McDonald (RSL) Lawrence James (the Mirror) and yours truly got special awards for contribution to sports.
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Dominic Johnson: the Big Draw for 2000 Independence Games
(23 February 2000) - There can have been few more eagerly anticipated national track and field championship meets than this weekend's Independence Games at the Mindoo Philip Park. Since the sprint wars of the early nineties between Verneta Lesforis and Michelle Baptiste, the towering performances of Edmund Estephane, Maxwell Seales and Ivan Jn Marie, no individual has been so keenly awaited as Dominic Johnson.
The 24-year old national record holder in the pole vault, decathlon and heptathlon is fresh off being named as the 1999 Sportsman of the Year, having become last June the first St. Lucian man to win gold at the Central American and Caribbean Games. On Sunday, he'll be competing in up to four events, including the long jump, the 100m dash, the 4x100m relay and the 400m dash. A large crowd is likely to be on hand.
Dominic will do well, but conditions are not necessarily in his favour. He's a very good sprinter, but on rubber, not grass. The young guns will be seeking to upset the Olympian, with Junior Sportsman of the Year Damian Henville heading the pack. Not far behind will be Gimry Lewis and Soufriere's Nihemiah St. Jean. Word is that Estephane is injured, or we'd have a huge individual and relay battle on our hands come Sunday.
Still, Dominic ought to be disappointed if he fails to take at least three, and perhaps four gold medals. It would be a great personal boost for him, as this will be the first time that he'll be performing on home soil - he attended high school and university in the United States. A strong showing from Dominic on Sunday would surely help rally the nation behind him as he tries to make this year's Olympic pole vault finals.
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Ewan's Millennium Comes in Washburn Century
(22 February 2000) - Ewan Auguste became the sixteenth highest scorer all time for the Washburn University basketball team of Topeka Kansas at the weekend, as the Ichabods rolled to a 100-85 win over Missouri Western. Playing at home, Auguste, a graduate of St. Mary's College, tallied sixteen points on an abnormal 5-13 shooting from the field. In the process, however, the 23-year old recorded his 1000th collegiate career point, finishing the night with 1007.
It was fitting that Ewan hit the millennium mark with a free throw - he traveled to the charity stripe seven times on the night, converting on six of his trips. The 6'8" junior also led his team in rebounding with ten, and the side hit the century mark for the first time in five years. Washburn locked up a second seed in the Mid-American Intercollegiate Athletics Association basketball tournament, and they're still in with a chance to steal the top spot in the conference.
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Frenchmen Dominate Mon Repos Road Run
(22 February 2000) - The 12th Mon Repos Road Relay was meant to celebrate St. Lucia's 21st Independence anniversary, but it was the colonials who were in charge of the proceedings. Three teams from Martinique claimed the podium Sunday, with La Marie Sportif picking up their fifth title in the Relay. The Frenchmen ended the 25.5 kilometre course in an hour, 28 minutes, 30 seconds. Next were ASC Police in 1:28:34 and Club Pelien in 1:30:40.
St. Lucia's flagbearers, the Roadbusters, were fourth in 1:33:59, and the La Pointe 4H Club fifth in 1:45:23, the first Mon Repos group to cross the finish line. La Pointe won the Mon Repos title in 1991. The event was well patronised, and organisers boasted that they had had "the largest crowds ever" for the Relay. The only blot was that the Road Relay was competing with the Independence 10K, meaning that some top local runners were unavailable.
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Ali Streets Ahead at Independence 10K
(20 February 2000) - Wayne "Ali" St. Ange was fourteen seconds ahead of the next finisher at the 2000 Independence 10 Kilometre Road Race, but that was hardly a measure of his dominance. In steady rain, St. Ange led from start to finish, running hundreds of yards ahead of Stephen Asson and Jason Sayers. The race began from the Rex St. Lucian at 4pm, with sizeable representation from a number of schools, the most notable of which was the Bocage Secondary School. An official tally was unavailable, but I counted at least eight blue shirts.
St. Ange crossed the finish line in 33 minutes, 20.2 seconds and he perhaps could have had a better finish had he been pushed harder. Victor Ledgers and John Gaston were absent, though, and St. Ange was never under any real pressure. Asson, winner in the 30-39 division, was second overall in 33:34.6, with Sayers (33:45.5) in third. Zachariah Paul won the under fifteen division, Junior Joseph the 16-20. St. Ange was the 20-29, winner, Wilfred Benoit took the 40-49 division; fifty-two year old super-veteran Costello Michel was the 50 plus winner.
Soufriere's teenaged long distance genius Nessa Paul won the women's race ahead of Juliana Actie, ending in 41:27.4 to Actie's 41:35.6; Nessa, though, was nearly disqualified because she couldn't initially find her official number. Priscilla Emmanuel was third in 43:46.6, and she finished second to Actie in the 21-29 division. Malika Modeste won the under fifteen class, Lucy Blondell the 30-39 category and Agnes Maynard the 40-49 division.
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Lucian Stars Represent At OECS Swimming
(20 February 2000) - Grenada repeated as Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS) Swim Champions, but the host territory, St. Lucia, got more than a measure of revenge. St. Lucia's Swimming Association inaugurated the Rodney Heights Aquatic Centre with a hundred swimmers and officials from five OECS territories. The hometown team was outpointed 1273 to 1055, but the next best team was Dominica with 154. The St. Lucian performance was spearheaded, unsurprisingly, by Jamie Peterkin and Sherri Scobie-Henry.
The overseas-based stars justified the hype surrounding their competitive return home, being named the meet's Most Outstanding Swimmers. Trinidad-based Sherri won the 15-17 age group, with eight gold medals from eight events, and 72 points, two ahead of Grenada's 13 year old Gabriella Grant. Sherri won her pet events easily, the 100m freestyle in a minute 6.16 seconds and the 50 free in 29.1 seconds, beating Grenadian Sarah Banfield in both events. Banfield was clearly second best to Sherri every time they shared the pool.
Jamie, who's at school in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, was the 15-17 male champion and overall male champion with 72 points and nine gold medals in ten events. He clocked 55.55 seconds in the 100 free, breaking his OECS record by over a second. The eighteen-year old also broke the 50 free record by more than a second, hitting the wall in 25.37 seconds, well ahead of the 26.84 seconds he had at last year's Pan-American Games. Jamie was undone, though, as his cousin Nicholas ended the 18-24 50 free in 25.19 seconds.
Nicholas Peterkin was another of St. Lucia's outstanding swimmers, winning his division with 52 points, although he did lose two of seven individual events and St. Lucia was disqualified in the 200m freestyle relay. Felix Meixner was the 8 and under hometown champion; Brittany Eames, 1999 junior female swimmer of the year in St. Lucia, was Meixner's counterpart. The domestic association will be hosting the 2000 OECS meet later this year, by which time the finishing touches will have been put on the Aquatic Centre.
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