The Tribune

By RENALDO DORSETT

Tribune Sports Reporter

rdorsett@tribunemedia.net

The Bahamas Association of Independent Secondary Schools is set to return to its sporting calendar with athletics as the first inter-school competition in nearly two years.

Fidelity Bank and Trust is on board as the title sponsor for the 32nd BAISS Track and Field Meet, scheduled to be hosted today and tomorrow at Thomas A Robinson National Stadium.

Event organisers expect approximately 500 athletes to compete as nine of the BAISS’ 14 schools have confirmed their participation.

The St Augustine’s College Big Red Machine are the defending champions, but noticeably absent from this year’s field will be perennial contenders - Queen’s College Comets.

Gowon Bowe, group chief executive officer for Fidelity, said youth development is a pillar of his organisation’s community outreach.

“Within our organisation we have really started the initiative talking about your actual physical health, financial health, mental health and naturally sports aligns with physical health. To be perfectly honest, another part of the Fidelity principles is the development of sports. So when we think about putting together youth sports, it certainly was a natural fit,” he said. “This was one that we wanted to ensure comes off. With such short notice, certainly for the athletes and for the administrators organising it, if we could remove the burden of ‘how do we pay for this’ then it would allow us to focus on the matter at hand which is developing our youth and watching them focus their talents.”

Outstanding athletes in each division will receive special recognition in memory of Anwer Sunderji, former CEO and director of the Fidelity Group.

“He was a very big advocate of youth development, his focus was on education, but it was always toward the youth. We saw this as a fitting way to memorialise him and we certainly, as we pause and remember his impact on not just financial services and this organisation, but the wider community,” Bowe said. “He went about it in a quiet manner, but he was a giant among us. We recognise his legacy in part by recognising the success of the youth.”

Perry Cunningham, president of the BAISS, said he hoped for the partnership between the organisations to continue in the near future. The BAISS has sought approval to have both volleyball and swimming competitions before the academic year concludes.

“Every year the BAISS tries to find ways and means to fund this great event and we thank Fidelity bank which has come on and partnered with us for this event,” he said. “I cannot say how grateful we are and we look forward to making things happen for our young people even in a pandemic.”

Marici Thompson, chairperson of the BAISS Sports Committee, said that while conditions of the meet may be different for athletes and spectators amid the pandemic, the atmosphere of competition will remain the same.

“Some of the schools participating will only be sending athletes that are a part of track clubs and that it because most of the schools have not had the opportunity to have interhouse competition and those club athletes, they have been active,” she said.

The final day of competition tomorrow will be open for students and spectators. COVID-19 testing will not be required for entry but Thompson said required protocols will be in place, including a limited amount of spectators.

“We have to limit the amount of spectators in the stands, we can only allow a certain amount. We have to fulfil all the safety protocols. That will affect how many people will be coming out. We are not requiring testing, because it is open air but we are going to ask families and students to space out, maintain social distancing and to make sure everyone is wearing a mask,” she said. “The whole atmosphere will be different than years past, but we are still going to liven up the stadium, have a good time and, despite all of the restrictions, we will have a good time.”

In 2020, the Big Red Machine won by the slimmest of margins to regain the title from the Comets who took the title in 2019.

In a stunning 8.5 point victory, SAC scored 1,287, followed closely by Queen’s College with 1,278.50 points.

The St John’s College Giants re-emerged as a challenger to the top two contenders with an impressive third place finish with 656 points, while St Anne’s Blue Waves clinched fourth place with 417.83 points and the Temple Christian Suns rounded out the top five with 359.33 points.