Barbados Plans to Enhance Sports Training Collaboration with Jamaica

Minister of Sport Charles Griffith says the Government of Barbados plans to engage with its colleagues in Jamaica to enhance the standard of training and coaching of the sport in the island.

Griffith said he had discussions with Jamaica minister of sport, Olivia Grange, and officials in Bridgetown and Kingston will work on developing a memorandum of understanding (MOU) to facilitate the exchange of expertise.

“I was at a conference last week in Washington and had a sit-down with Minister Grange,” Griffith said during a constituency meeting of the governing Barbados Labour Party on Sunday.

“They have worked with Trinidad in terms of developing the coaches there . . . and the permanent secretary is to check with the ministry of foreign affairs because Minister Grange said they had sent back an MOU between Jamaica and us to exchange coaches and to be able to work with them in terms of how we develop.”

World 400-metres bronze medallist Sada Williams currently trains with the Maximising Velocity and Power (MVP) club under iconic coach Stephen Francis in Jamaica.

Griffith said the ministry had helped another athlete with an attachment to same club, but he said the island needed to have quality coaches to be able to develop performers to world-class standards.

“I won’t push it at this meeting, but I’m concerned with the level of coaches,” he said. “My thing is that if you’re going to have a world-class athlete, you must match that athlete with a worldclass coach, so this is one of the initiatives I have working with Jamaica. (CMC)