By Neto Baptiste
In a show of overwhelming support for two student athletes from the Ottos Comprehensive School (OCS), members of the public and the business community, on Tuesday, pledged financial and in-kind assistance as they sought to provide the youngsters with the correct gear and other requirements necessary to propel them upwards.
Middle and long distance competitor Bequincia Eugene, who medalled in both the 1500 and the 3000 meters at the recently held Interschools Track & Field Championships, is one such athlete. The 13-year-old wowed spectators at the YASCO Sports Complex as she competed in a Crocs, a popular leisure footwear, dominating the 3000 open and winning the 1500 under-15 events.
Eugene, who does not own a pair of spikes or running shoes, said she decided to don the fashionable Crocs after having previously run barefooted and coming up a bit short.
“I ran the 1500 last year and I came second in that race and I just want to say thank you to my principal because he push me to work hard, and from I got that second place medal when the girl from All Saints beat me, I said to myself that I can’t let her beat me this year again, so I decided to run in my Crocs. I didn’t run in any shoes last year so maybe that’s why she got a chance to beat me,” she said.
Also receiving support is high-jumper Nicholas Simpson, who registered a Carifta qualifying height of 1.95 meters in the high jump while setting a new national record, bettering the 1.75 meters set by PMS’ Durell Thomas in 2022.
Simpson, who is also in need of gear ahead of the Carifta Championships, said he is happy with his performance to date, wishing only that he would have taken the sport a bit more serious at an earlier stage.
“It was a bit of confusion at first because I was really focussing on beating my record from last year which was 1.85, so I was focusing on beating myself. When I realised that I actually qualified and that I made people proud, I made Mr Daniel Henry who is my guardian, proud and he push me a lot. Mr Roberts push me a lot and I had sort of disappointed them in a way because I could have gone to Carifta two years ago when I first started if I was training, but I didn’t follow through with the training because I actually wanted to do basketball,” he said.
Meanwhile, the Principal of Ottos Comprehensive School, Foster Roberts, said that although Eugene and Simpson are currently in the spotlight, there are many other student athletes within the walls of the institution who are in need of similar support.
“We need sponsors like those as well in our schools, so where we have individuals who are unable to do that, for competition purposes, we can have these [equipment] because some of our parents are just not able to and schools can do so much and no more when it comes to situations like. So it’s a special appeal we are putting out for Bequincia and Nicholas. There are many other students as well but these two in particular because they are very special,” he said.
OCS finished fourth in the boys’ category with 109 points and fifth in the girls category with 82 points.
(Observer media photo)