By Neto Baptiste
The Ministry of Sports will forge ahead with this year’s National Sports Awards, despite only receiving nominations from 12 associations ahead of the April 12 deadline for submissions.
This is according to the Minister of Sports, Daryll Matthew, who said no further nominations will be accepted with the awards — the first since the Covid-19 pandemic — set to take place on June 8.
“I’ve learnt to stop taking blows for people because here is what happens: you give an extension and they don’t nominate, so you give another extension. This has happened in the past and then suddenly the ministry starts getting blows for delaying sports awards. So I’ve said to the staff at the ministry of sports that when the date is done, the date is done when you’ve reached the cutoff point and the deadline has passed already. The judges are adjudicating as we speak so there is no opportunity at this point to submit any other nominees. The director of sports, Heather Daley, she has been on the phone with every single association and calling them personally, asking them to submit nominees,” he said.
Athletics, bodybuilding, cricket, cycling, swimming, volleyball, netball, basketball, triathlon, sailing, domino, and draughts have all submitted nominations with football; however, fencing, tennis, golf, and drag racing are noticeably absent from the list.
Matthew expressed disappointment in the decision by the associations not to showcase the achievements of their top performers by making the necessary nominations.
“Can you imagine that we have almost 30 national associations here in Antigua and Barbuda and for sportsman of the year we have eight nominees, sportswoman of the year is five nominees, administrator of the year is four nominees, coach of the year is six nominees?” the minister asked.
“It makes me wonder what is happening in a lot of these associations. A lot of times persons only want government to get involved in associations when it comes to them asking for resources or asking for support, which is fine. But the problem I have with that is when associations don’t do well, when they don’t recognise their athletes, it somehow becomes government’s fault that associations are not functioning. I just want to encourage all the national associations out there to take the extra step, go the extra mile to recognise your athletes,” he said.
A venue for this year’s event has not yet been announced.
The annual awards have been on hiatus since it was last held in 2020 when it was dominated by track and field.
Sprinter Cejhae Greene and high-jumper Priscilla Frederick Loomis were named Sportsman and Sportswoman of The Year for 2019, while junior athletes and sprinters Joella Lloyd and Ajarni Daley copped the Junior Sportswoman and Sportsman titles.
