The Tribune

By BRENT STUBBS

Senior Sports Reporter

bstubbs@tribunemedia.net

IT was Steven ‘Speedy’ Gardiner’s Day as the World and Olympic men’s 400 metre champion was rewarded with a hefty $100,000 promotional endorsement contract as a brand ambassador for BTC’s “Elevate What’s Next” campaign.

Yesterday’s signing at the BTC’s flagship store at the Mall at Marathon location to promote their super-fast fiber internet product was attended by newly appointed Minister of Youth, Sports and Culture, Mario Bowleg and Bahamas Olympic Committee president Romell Knowles, along with some of their executive officers.

Gardiner, who was joined by his family members, his first coach Rev Anthony Williams from Abaco and one of his agents, Juanita Bryant, were then escorted to various communities on the island to assist BTC in their food giveaway assistance.

BTC’s Chief Executive Officer Andre Foster said from the moment that Gardiner crossed the finish line with his August 5 victory in a season’s best of 43.85 seconds at the Olympics in Tokyo, Japan, the sponsorship was the culmination of discussions that started the minute Gardiner crossed the finish line with his celebrated performance.

“I remember like it was yesterday, as I and perhaps the entire world waited with great anticipation as we watched Stevie’s every stride around the track and his execution of a winning strategy,” Foster said.

“In less than one minute, 43.85 seconds to be precise, he made our country proud. I am sure every Bahamian household remembers the screams of joy and social media exploding with ‘242’ pride and to see one of our Bahamian son’s take the gold.

Foster said Gardiner’s victory comes at a time when the Bahamas is still grappling with the effects of a global pandemic and the recovery of Hurricane Dorian.

“His victory rejuvenated and revived us all, he was, and is, every Bahamian’s hero,” he said. “As a company we knew that BTC’s partnership with this very special athlete was aligned with the elevation of BTC to the next level as the premier telecommunications provider for all of the Bahamas.

Under his contract, Gardiner will be endorsing BTC’s super fast high speed internet as BTC focuses on his achievements as a “speedy” competitor on the track as they take their products throughout the Bahamas.

“We have had a number of athletes who we sponsored in the past, we had them doing a lot of things that we were doing at the time,” Foster said. “If you look back, previous athletes focused more on global space.

“This is the first time we’re focusing on our fixed services. We think that the 43.83 that Stevie ran is exactly what we provide in terms of the fastest speed in the Bahamas.”

Gardiner, 26, joins the list of athletes, including Shaunae Miller-Uibo, the Golden Knights, the Golden Girls, Arianna Vanderpool-Wallace and Tonique Williams, whom BTC sponsored in the past for their accomplishments on the global stage.

In response, Gardiner thanked Foster and the executives of BTC, Knowles and the BOC executives and Bowleg and his staff at the Ministry of Youth, Sports and Culture and Williams, whom he regards as his “first and one of my best coaches of all times.”

Accepting his new role as a member of the BTC team, Gardiner said it’s no secret that “BTC” cares about sports. He recalled his first CARIFTA Games in 2014 when BTC was the major sponsor, as well as the sponsors of his first Olympic Games in 2014.

“I just want to come aboard and keep the spirit going and make things better and better as the years go by,” he said. “Thank you to everyone who came out here today. Let’s get the job done.”

Knowles lauded BTC, who have over the years, chartered the sponsorship of sports in the country, including their partnership with the BOC in 2012 for the Olympics in London, England.

He commended Carol Barnett, senior manager – marketing, events and sponsorship and her team for their tremendous effort to make their contribution to the growth and development of sports to the point that the Bahamas can now celebrate with Gardiner, who came from humble beginnings in Moore’s Island, Abaco under coach Williams.

“If you understand the dedication and the early morning hours on the rocky field and being Stevie Gardiner to Nassau, I remember this kid who was five pounds less than he is now, took the track by storm, We couldn’t believe it,” Knowles said.

“A young man from Abaco without the necessary training facilities, came to Nassau and beat our best athletes in Nassau. I remember standing next to Mike Sands and he said ‘boy, this boy is going to be special.’ I was a little embarrassed because here in the Family Islands, we have those undiscovered islands and he came to Nassau and put a bruising on those kids at the nationals.”

Based on what he’s seen on Gardiner’s Facebook page as he promotes his work ethic and the values that BTC has displayed is a “match made in heaven,” as he congratulated them both on behalf of the BOC.

Bowleg, the Member of Parliament for Garden Hills under the Progressive Liberal Party, congratulated Gardiner on his stellar accomplishment and he looks forward to the continued efforts of companies like BTC in assisting the athletes in their future endeavours.

“From humble beginnings to the world stage, Steven Gardiner was determined to rise. His commitment, hard work and drive propelled him to international fame, with the dream of thousands of Bahamians on his back,” Bowleg said. “He has made the Bahamas proud. ‘Speedy Stevie’, the jewel of our Family Islands and The Bahamas.”

As the former president of the Bahamas Basketball Federation, who has worked with athletes coming out of the Family Islands, Bowleg said it’s very important to have the corporate sponsorship like BTC to help groom and sustain these athletes’ abilities to maintain the level that they have attained.

“The government itself does not have the funding necessary to ensure that these athletes get the funding they need to train themselves to sustain the level that they are, when corporate sponsors like BTC come on board, it’s just exactly what we need,” he stressed.

“So while we might give our donations to these athletes and we want to make sure we increase our donations, BTC is making life much easier for the government to ensure these athletes maintain this level of competition and performances.”

With the proper facilities in place on the islands, Bowleg said the goal is also to ensure that the coaches have the proper training to assist the athletes in their growth and development to follow in the footsteps of athletes like Gardiner, who had to come to New Providence to continue his training.

In making that move and excelling all the way to the top of the world, Gardiner said he’s just delighted to be involved with BTC as they continue to push sports forward and he hopes to do it all over again for the Bahamian people.

Before leaving town on Thursday to return to Florida to prepare for his off season training, Gardiner will participate in a school tour today as he virtually visits with hundreds of students of HO Nash Junior High, LN Coakley High School in Exuma, Moore’s Island All Aged School and Sir Jack Hayward School in Grand Bahama.

A commercial has already been produced featuring Gardiner and, on BTC’s page, there is a poster of Gardiner with the words: “Bring Home Winning Speed” as a tribute to Gardiner’s latest achievement and his newly signed contractual agreement.