A record number of coaches across the spectrum of sports have responded to the call of the Jamaica Olympic Association (JOA) in respect of a hi-level coaches' course, which will be delivered by Panam Sports in partnership with the Canadian Coaching Association.
More than 70 stakeholders have registered their commitment to pursue the course, which will cover Coaching Philosophy and Leadership, Advanced Performance Planning, Energy Systems and Physiology, Strength and Conditioning, Sports Psychology, Advanced Injury Prevention and Recovery Strategies and High-Performance Analysis.
The call by JOA is in keeping with its developmental strategies of which education and training are critical elements. In a communique to member federations and stakeholders concerning the course, JOA President, Christopher Samuda, made clear that the game plan of the governing body is "to build capacity for today's feats and tomorrow's legacies".
The course is part of a suite of educational courses that the apex body is continuing to make accessible to stakeholders and supports the Advanced Sports Management Course (ASMC) which the JOA will, for the first time in its history, make available to a cohort in the Diaspora.
There has never been a response of this magnitude by the sporting fraternity to any of its coaching initiatives.
In applauding the tremendous response to the coaches' course and the ASMC - which continues to be over-subscribed - JOA Secretary General/CEO, Ryan Foster, said: "Our members and stakeholders have not only seized the JOA's vision of the value of education and training but have embraced the known principle that an investment in education pays the best dividends in your working life and is your pension in your twilight years."
The national association for Olympic and non-Olympic sports is driven in creating and investing in lifelong skills and knowledge-based and technically equipped stakeholders.
Samuda, in commenting on the strategic direction of JOA, stated: "The creation of a sports industry demands a physical and socio-economic infrastructure that is based on viable investments in the human capital and not on hand-outs, for the latter creates a dependency while the former promotes independence and mastery."
Mastery, in the various disciplines of sport, is the business of the JOA which quite recently also made two calls for opportunities in pursuing master's degrees. The Master of Arts (MA), a postgraduate degree in Sports, Ethics and Integrity, and the Master of Sport Administration (MSP), a postgraduate degree in organizational management, sports marketing and research, are both tenable at international universities.
They will inaugurate an initiative that the JOA has branded ‘Olympic EduPower’ that will provide masters and doctoral educational opportunities for members and stakeholders in empowering them.
“If sport is to become a sustainable business then the mind must first have and make an educated appointment with destiny, which the body will then be conditioned to keep it," said Samuda.
Reflecting on Foster's comment last month when announcing that the JOA's pioneering Internship Programme, Samuda said it “is all about self-actualisation and a personal call to own your future in sport”.
The Internship Programme is currently underway at Olympic Manor, the headquarters of the JOA.
The JOA will create Olympic history locally, and arguably globally when later this year it makes its Internship Programme available to Jamaicans in the Diaspora. It will also in the second quarter of this year, through its educational ‘Stamina’ forum series roll-out, in collaboration with international federations, customized courses for administrators and coaches as part of its investment in education.
Jamaican sprinter Oblique Seville eager for clash with 100 World Champion Noah Lyles at Racers Grand Prix
Jamaican sprinter Oblique Seville is gearing up for an electrifying showdown against world champion Noah Lyles at the upcoming Racers Grand Prix on June 1, setting the stage for a thrilling test of readiness ahead of the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris.
Seville, who finished fourth at the 2023 World Championships in Budapest where Lyles clinched his first 100m world title, is optimistic about his chances this season, having managed to steer clear of injury thus far. Seville's coach, Glen Mills, revealed earlier this year that an injury at a crucial stage last season hindered Seville's performance in Budapest, where he clocked 9.88 seconds, narrowly missing out on a medal.
Reflecting on his preparation for the upcoming races, Seville expressed confidence in his improved health and training regimen this season. "This year I have taken some drastic steps with regards to my injuries and injury management. I am cautious with what I'm doing so I am healthy at this point, and everything is going well," Seville explained at Tuesday's launch of the Racers Grand Prix at the Jamaica Pegasus in Kingston.
Seville's recent performances, including a 47.44-second 400m and a 20.17-second 200m, demonstrate his dedication and hard work leading into this pivotal season. "The 47.44 and the 20.17 that I ran show my dedication and hard work, so it is a possibility that I can make it onto the medal podium if things work out as planned," Seville remarked.
“Last year, I didn’t get to train the way I really wanted to but this year I got to train the way I wanted so everything is working out. I am stronger because I have got more chances training wise to do things I didn’t get the chance to do last year because of some niggles that I had.
“I had some issues with my back and stuff which caused me not to be able to lift weights as much as I could but I got it sorted out now and I am good.”
Looking ahead to the Racers Grand Prix, where he will face off against Lyles and training partner Zharnel Hughes, Seville expressed excitement about the opportunity to race against the world's best. "The last time I competed against Lyles was at the World Championship finals, so it's good to run with him before the Olympics to get a feel of what is to come," Seville emphasized.
The clash between Seville, Lyles, and Hughes at the Racers Grand Prix at the National Stadium in Kingston, promises to be a thrilling preview of what's in store for the Olympic Games in Paris, as Seville aims to secure his first global medal.
Americas Paralympic Committee gains autonomy, assumes ownership of regional games from IPC
The Americas Paralympic Committee (APC), the regional governing body for Paralympic sports for North, South and Central America and the Caribbean with a membership of 33 countries, has gained autonomy from the International Paralympic Committee (IPC), the global apex body.
The APC will now assume full ownership and delivery of senior and junior para regional games. In previous years, the IPC managed and sponsored those games but, after a period of several discussions and negotiations, the regional events have fallen to the APC and directors of the Jamaica Paralympic Association (JPA) are playing an instrumental role in history making.
President of the Jamaica Paralympic Association (JPA), Christopher Samuda and JPA directors, Ryan Foster, Carmen Patterson and Winfield Boban are committing their professional expertise and experience in building the new APC.
Samuda, an attorney-at-law, is an APC executive board director and will spearhead legal and corporate governance affairs while Foster, a chartered accountant, will, as co-chairman of the Finance Commission, pilot the financial viability and fortunes of the regional body. Patterson, a corporate communications specialist, will join regional experts in delivering the brand and marketing strategies and activations of the APC and Boban will bring to the educational portfolio his knowledge and experience gained, particularly as a practitioner in rehabilitation management and prosthetics.
The IPC, the global governing body, delivers every four years the world’s largest multi-sport para event, the Paralympic Games, which this year will take place in Paris, France, from August 28 to September 8. The Santiago 2023 Para Panamerican Games, which was held in Chile, from November 17 to 26, witnessed the IPC’s last ownership of the games.
Commenting on the historic role Jamaica will play Samuda said: “It is in our sporting DNA to construct, for the able with a difference, the present and future based on values in the hope that our work and that of our colleagues will birth an apex regional sporting body of probity which history will record as revolutionary and visionary.”
Foster, advocates the imperative of a sound financial framework and base and gives a clear signal of what will be approach. “The sub-structure of any organization is crucial to the profitability of its superstructure and frugal management of expenses, innovative investment and revenue strategies as well as disciplined treasury operations are foundational to success.”
With the APC assuming ownership, there will be “a dominant focus on establishing and monetizing international partnerships and commercializing proprietary rights and games’ media broadcast rights” Samuda said “while building regional capacity through the delivery of business and technical activations during and external to games,” he further added.
Games are the lifeblood of governing regional and international bodies and Foster makes the case that “APC will be to its stakeholders more than a breath of fresh air as it will represent for them the very essence and excellence of para sports.”
The heart of the Paralympic movement across the multi-lingual continents of the Americas and the Caribbean archipelago, the APC is keeping an appointment with destiny.
Harpy Eagles complete 212-run win over Scorpions on day four at Sabina Park
The Guyana Harpy Eagles completed a comprehensive 212-run win over the Jamaica Scorpions on day four of their sixth round West Indies Championship fixture at Sabina Park on Saturday.
The Scorpions began day four 123-2 off 43 overs needing a further 296 runs for an improbable victory.
Things started horribly for the hosts when overnight batsmen Brandon King and Kirk McKenzie fell within the first ten over of the day for 15 and 40, respectively, leaving the Scorpions 127-4 off 49.4 overs.
The rest of the wickets fell with little resistance as the Scorpions ended up being bowled out for 206 in 71.1 overs.
Gudakesh Motie and Kevin Sinclair were the top bowlers for the Harpy Eagles with identical figures of 3-32 from 16.1 and 19 overs, respectively.
Full Scores: Guyana Harpy Eagles 424 all out off 116.3 overs (Kemol Savory 155, Tevin Imlach 101*, Gudakesh Motie 56, Ojay Shields 4-103, Peat Salmon 3-117) & 147-4 off 35.3 overs (Tevin Imlach 44, Kevin Sinclair 36, Derval Green 2-39)
Jamaica Scorpions 153 all out off 61.1 overs (Brandon King 32, Ramaal Lewis 24, Veerasammy Permaul 5-55, Isai Thorne 2-19) & 206 all out off 71 overs (Kirk McKenzie 40, Javaughn Buchanan 39, Peat Salmon 30, Gudakesh Motie 3-32, Kevin Sinclair 3-32).
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