By Neto Baptiste
Former national sprinter Ruperta Charles, who represented Antigua and Barbuda at the 1984 Olympic Games in Los Angeles, USA, has become the third athlete to be honoured by the YASCO management committee by having her photo placed on the western wall of the track and field facility.
Speaking on the Good Morning Jojo sports show, Charles said the honour follows her induction into the Howard University Hall of Fame back in 2014 for her contribution at the institution as a track and field athlete.
“Not only am I being recognised here but my university also recognised me twice over as I’ve been inducted into the Hall of Fame at Howard University, so it just tells me that what I contributed to Antigua and to the university did not go unnoticed and I am appreciative of that,” she said.
Charles, a former Sportswoman of the Year and the first female to represent Antigua and Barbuda at an Olympic Games, said that, above all, her aim was to always be a positive role model to young female athletes.
“Not just being the first female Olympian but to be an example to the younger female coming up because in my day there weren’t a lot of females participating and I know that has been a problem in Antigua in terms of trying to get the girls to come out and participate in sports.
“The organised sports like netball and basketball and everybody wants that camaraderie, but that individual sport, track and field, it was very hard to corral girls to participate so just seeing where we’ve come from is really encouraging to me,” she said.
The Antiguan, who resides in the USA, wants to be remembered as someone who never walked away from a challenge and who also defended her flag.
“Determination and just belief because when I left here and went to Howard University, I knew I was pretty good in and around the Caribbean because we’d gone to Carifta Games and won gold medals so when I went there [Howard University] it wasn’t like I was a nobody but people really didn’t know me in the US so I had something to prove to them – so just determination, just willpower and just confidence in yourself is a legacy I would like to leave behind,” Charles said.
Charles, who recently celebrated her 60th birthday, also represented Antigua and Barbuda in the 1983 World Games in Helsinki.
The other two former athletes on the wall are Calvin Greenaway and Sir Lester Bird, both deceased.