In a bid to foster a new era of athletic excellence across multiple sports, St. Lucia's Sports Minister Kenson Joel Casimir, has revealed the government's strategic investments in developing young talents on the island.

The success of notable athletes like Bowerman Award winner Julien Alfred, cricket icons Darren Sammy and Johnson Charles, and rising star sprinter Naomi London has ignited a wave of inspiration and paved the way for broader support for sports development.

Minister Casimir shared insights into the government's commitment to nurturing talent across various sports, including track and field, cricket, and football. The shift in paradigm also involves reimagining the island's inter-school track and field championships to enhance stakeholder engagement.

“We as a government, we've decided that we are going to take the added step of moving our inter-schools’ competition, that we have coined Island Champs, to a weekend event. And of course, we've been trying to get public buy-in, you know, parental support," the minister revealed in an exclusive interview with Sportsmax.TV

Explaining the rationale behind the change, he added, "We found that during the week in St Lucia, we've not been able to really get the amount of support that we want from the commercial sector, from parents, and from all walks of life and so we have rebranded our schools’ championship in track and field to ensure that the likes of a Julien (Alfred) or Naomi London could be on display for all of St Lucia to see, not just on television. (So), a Sunday event, a Sunday afternoon family event for St Lucians to see some of the next athletes that we are going to be exporting to the world."

Highlighting strides made in cricket, Minister Casimir revealed that plans to develop the next great cricketers from the island are well underway.

 “We have a high-performance centre that has been set up for cricket for the first time in our history where we've put 15 of our best male and female cricketers into a program where they are given nutritional support, they're given the best facilities to work with, the best coaches to work with."

The government has collaborated with the St Lucia Kings, a CPL franchise, to bring in coaches from India, contributing to the holistic development of cricket talent on the island.

Turning to football, Minister Casimir revealed exciting plans for grassroots development with renowned figures in the sport.

 “With the likes of Coach Stuart Charles-Fevrier and Earl ‘Ball Hog’ Jean, we're going to be seeing the launch of a grassroots development program in football," Minister Casimir revealed while highlighting the contributions of Stuart Charles and Earl Jean to St. Lucia's global representation and their involvement in an elite program for under-17 footballers.

The initiatives revealed by Minister Casimir reflect a broader vision to elevate sports in St. Lucia and create a lasting legacy of sporting excellence.

In a historic triumph for St. Lucia, Julien Alfred, representing the University of Texas in Austin, claimed the prestigious Bowerman Award last Thursday night in Denver, Colorado. The 22-year-old athlete's remarkable achievements has drawn praise from her country’s government, specifically from St. Lucia's Sports Minister, Kenson Joel Casimir, who expressed immense pride in her accomplishments.

The 22-year-old Alfred, in her senior year, contributed to five NCAA titles for the Longhorns, becoming the first female athlete to win the 60- and 200-metre indoor championships, along with the 100- and 200-metre outdoor crowns in the same year. She was also part of Texas winning the 4x100 relay at the Division 1 outdoor final, helping the Longhorns secure the women’s team title.

Alfred, who has since signed a professional contract with PUMA, set collegiate indoor records in the 60 at 6.94 and 200 by clocking 22.01, both the second-fastest times in history, at the Division 1 finals in Albuquerque. She also produced the fastest all-conditions outdoor marks in NCAA history, with wind-aided efforts of 10.72 in the 100 and 21.73 in the 200, in addition to contributing to the collegiate record of 41.55 in the 4x100, all at the NCAA championship on her home track at Mike A. Myers Stadium in Austin.

Minister Casimir, in an exclusive interview with Sportsmax.TV, commended Julien Alfred's dedication and hard work throughout her athletic journey, acknowledging her commitment to training and improvement from her days at the Leon Hess Comprehensive Secondary School to high school in Jamaica and finally to the University of Texas.

“The government of St Lucia is exceedingly happy with the achievement of Julien Alfred. Of course, it came through a lot of hard work on her part. I want to, as the Minister of Sports for St Lucia, congratulate Julien and her family first and foremost.

"We've known of her commitment towards training and improvement from a very young age, from her alma mater at the Leon Hess Comprehensive Secondary School all the way to Jamaica and over to Texas. And so we're very proud that she has made those strides as she continues to make St. Lucia proud," Minister Casimir remarked.

Highlighting the government's commitment to supporting its athletes, Minister Casimir outlined the specific measures taken to aid Julien Alfred in her athletic endeavors. He emphasized the groundbreaking decision to allocate a line item in the national budget to ensure comprehensive support for the athlete.

"The government of the St. Lucia Labour Party has ensured that we put our athletes first. And of course, this year, for our last budget, we took the position that we, for the first time in our history, have a line item specifically to ensure that an athlete was furnished with all that she needed to flourish."

Minister Casimir detailed the crucial steps taken to provide Julien Alfred with the necessary resources, including a diplomatic passport, a first in the nation's history. The minister underscored the significance of this decision, recognizing the challenges international athletes face in terms of travel and logistics.

"Never in our history was that done before, simply because we understood that an individual was going to do two-a-day training, calorie restriction in terms of her nutrition, mental training, and doing all of that, making all the sacrifices for her country, it would not be right for an international athlete of that level to have to stand up on the line to either get home or go anywhere in the world."

The government's support extended beyond paperwork, as Minister Casimir detailed financial assistance for psychosocial support, physiotherapy, and mental well-being. The comprehensive backing aimed to ease Julien Alfred's transition from a collegiate athlete to a professional.

"I, being a former athlete, would understand that there are certain things that you will just not be able to afford unless you get the support, especially when she was transitioning from a collegiate athlete over to a pro athlete. And so we made those things available to her readily."

Minister Casimir concluded with optimism for the future, stating, "We've seen the fruits of that and we are very proud of what she achieves and we looking forward to 2024 and, of course, we are just expecting bigger and better things from Julien Alfred."

Alfred represented St Lucia at the World Athletics Championships in Budapest in August. In her first-ever World Championship 100m finals, Alfred finished fifth in a time of 10.93. She was fourth in the 200m final in a handsome time of 22.05.

Alfred won a silver medal in the 100m at the 2022 Commonwealth Games in Birmingham, England.