by Carlena Knight
A new president for the Antigua and Barbuda Basketball Association (ABBA) will be chosen when the early elections take place in March.
Incumbent President Kebra Nanton has confirmed to this newsroom that she will not be vying for a second term after creating history almost four years ago when she was elected as the first female to ever head the sporting association.
Nanton, who is also a former national player, explained that it was a tough decision to make, as she was heavily considering running for a second time for the presidency.
“I actually had made the decision that I was running and I shared it with my team in December but I wasn’t sure if I could fully commit to it. If I was going to commit to it, I wanted to make that sure that I would have the capacity to function the way that I know I would want to function. It was just proving to be a bit challenging and I said you know what, it’s better to support in another way than to lead it,” Nanton explained.
She clarified that she has no intentions of running in any other position but added that she would still support whomever the new president and administration will be.
While reflecting on her near four-year term, Nanton noted the implementation of the new flooring at the JSC Sports Complex and the introduction of 3×3 basketball into the school’s programme as two of her greatest accomplishments.
Although not constitutionally due, ABBA will host an early elections next month.
For some, this may seem like a puzzling move by the current executive as the body has received public criticism for to not being as assertive as other associations in trying to see a return to competition.
But Nanton explained that plans were in motion but with the rise in Covid cases the return had to be cancelled.
“Just looking at all of that and the fact that I had no intentions of running for the presidency, we decided that it’s best if we bring up the Annual General Meeting (AGM), so that we will be there to support the new executive to prepare for the return of basketball.
“We recognise that it’s been two years since basketball and I just believe that the return to basketball is going to be a slow recovery just because of all of the protocols and, you know, it’s the most contact sport. So, just looking at that, we decided in the best interest of the sport, let’s call it early and prepare the next team for the return of basketball,” she said.
A specific date has not yet been finalised for the elections.