By Neto Baptiste
President of the Antigua and Barbuda National Olympic Committee (ABNOC), EP Chet Greene, has welcomed news that sailor Jalese Gordon has been confirmed for an ‘invitational place’ at the Tokyo Olympics scheduled for July 23 to August 8 in Japan.
The 19-year-old Gordon, who was previously confirmed as a wild card entry for the games had it taken place in 2020, was forced to wait another year for confirmation as to whether or not she would receive the same courtesy for the event that has been delayed due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
“She was confirmed a universality spot in the games for last year had they come off. We had to wait to see what changes there might have been for the 2021 games and just last week we got the confirmation form the international sailing federation.
“I want to congratulate her and Karl James and the sailing fraternity in Antigua and Barbuda for the outstanding work they continue to do,” Greene said.
The laser sailor joins sprinter Cejhae Greene and boxer Alston Ryan as the country’s athletes confirmed for the Tokyo games thus far.
Greene, who said the NOC is still awaiting word from the IOC regarding additional universality spots, also congratulated Ryan who, last week, was confirmed for the games based on rankings after a qualifier originally slated for Argentina last year was cancelled last month due to the pandemic.
“I want to, on behalf of the Olympic Committee, my own behalf and on behalf of the nation, congratulate Alston and wish him all the very best as he brands national colours for Antigua and Barbuda at the games,” the NOC head said.
Gordon is currently in Malta in preparation for this year’s Olympic Games. The athlete is coached by world renowned Antiguan sailor, Karl James.