Sports

Prime Minister: Maintaining Fitness Critical For Top Athletes

Prime Minister Mia Amor Mottley is encouraging sportsmen and women to pay greater attention to maintaining their fitness levels if they are to be at the top of their chosen sporting discipline.

She made this call yesterday during the launch of the Prime Minister’s Cup Football Tournament at the Barbados Football Association’s (BFA) headquarters at the Garfield Sobers Sports Complex, Wildey, St. Michael.

Ms. Mottley stressed that there needs to be a change in the approach by those who play sports in this country so that they can maintain good fitness and wellness.

“And that has to change in Barbados, and we need community by community … to be able to [achieve this] …. Mac [Fingall], I am appealing to you because you have spent your life teaching and he was the first one to tell me, as a young Minister of Education, that we must talk with, and not talk to, or at [people].

“We need to talk with our young people from ages seven, eight, nine, 10 and 11 and even the ones who are teenagers now and to explain to them, why their diet…their fitness… and the things that undermine fitness, like alcohol and smoking, will not help them if they intend to be a serious athlete,” the Prime Minister insisted.

Ms. Mottley continued: “That does not mean that when you are in the off-season that you cannot have a drink ‘here and there’, but the reality is that you and I both know that once that becomes too much, what happens to the body.

“It starts to underperform and therefore, the very thing that you want, which is an opportunity, who is the denying it? not a stranger…but yourself. That has to be the message that goes out there.”

The Prime Minister stressed that if the tournament achieved nothing else, she is hopeful that it would result in a change in the ecosystem “surrounding” how sporting individuals sustain themselves and make themselves capable of being the best that they can be as they proceed to higher levels in sports.

“This issue of wellness is a habit and it has to stay with you for life. Those who inculcate that habit from an early stage, have a better chance of sustaining [themselves]…. We have to understand that this is an individual choice, but if we don’t expose our children to it…if we don’t value it, if we don’t hold on to it, we are going to find that this thing is going to have diminishing returns…. Lung capacity matters and balance matters and I want that message to go through to our youngsters as we go forward,” Ms. Mottley underlined.

The structured semi-professional tournament will run for 14 weeks, starting on Sunday, August 25, and ending on Independence Day, Saturday, November 30.

There will be 89 matches played by 24 teams in communities across Barbados vying for the top prize of $100,000 and other prizes. Under this format, players and management will be paid for each game.

There were also addresses by Minister of Youth, Sports and Community Empowerment, Charles Griffith, and President of the BFA, Randolph Harris, while the Chairman of the Organising Committee, Omari Eastmond, gave an overview of the competition. (PR/GIS)

CAPTION: Prime Minister Mia Amor Mottley speaking at thel aunch of the Prime Minister’s Cup Football Tournament at the Barbados Football Association’s headquarters at the Garfield Sobers Sports Complex today. Looking on is Chairman of the tournament’s Organising Committee, Omari Eastmond.

Sports

FINAL T20I WASHED OUT

Article by David Harris

Rain washed out the fifth and final T20I match between the West Indies and England at the Darren Sammy Cricket Stadium in St Lucia on Sunday evening.

Only five overs were possible before the heavens opened up forcing the players to leave the field, and eventually play was called off a few hours later.

During the five overs, the West Indies raced to 44 for no wickets as openers Evin Lewis (29) and Shai Hope (17) continued from where they had left in the fourth T20 I on Saturday night.

Chasing 219 for victory, the West Indies scored 221 for five wickets in 19 overs, Lewis (68) and Hope (54) shared an opening stand of 136 runs in 9.1 overs that laid the foundation for the Caribbean side consolation win in the series.

England had already won the series after defeating their hosts by three wickets in the third T20 I at the same venue.

The West Indies international season continue with two Tests, three One Day Internationals, and two T20Is against Bangladesh.

The Test series starts at the Sir Vivian Richards Stadium, North Sound, Antigua on November 22.

Sports

A CLOSE WIN FOR ENGLAND AGAINST THE WEST INDIES

Article by David Harris

England won the T20I against the West Indies after defeating the regional team by three wickets in a close match at the Darren Sammy National Cricket Stadium in St Lucia on Thursday night.

Set a target of 146 for victory England scored 149 runs in 19.2 overs. The visitors losing the wickets of Phil Salt, Jos Buttler and Jacob Bethell for 43 runs at the end of the Power Play.

Opener Will Jacks (32) and Sam Curran (41) steadied the innings with a fourth wicket partnership of 38 runs. Jacks faced 33 balls and counted three fours, after Jacks’ dismissal, Curran and Liam Livingstone (39) added 39 vital runs for the fifth wicket.

Livingstone received three chances during his stay at the crease. Wicketkeeper Nicholas Pooran dropped him on six, off fast bowler Alzarri Joseph returning from his two-match suspension.

His second chance came when he was dropped by Pooran off left-arm spinner Gudakesh Motie on eight, and Shimron Hetmeyer failed to clasp a low chance at midwicket off Motie when Livington had scored 21.

Livingstone made the most of his reprieves, he struck Joseph for 16 runs in the 18^th over before being caught at long-off by Ramario Sheperd off Motie, by then England was within sight of victory. Motie was the most successful bowler for the West Indies with four wickets for 27 runs.

Earlier England won the toss for the third consecutive time and opted to field; the West Indies innings began disastrously losing five wickets for 37 runs in the sixth over, Rovman Powell (50) and Shepherd repaired the damage with 73 runs for the sixth wicket that took the score to 110 runs in the 16^th over.

The West Indies looked set to make a big score when fast bowler Jamie Overton trapped Shepherd lbw and picked up the wickets of Powell and Motie.

Joseph 21 not out and Akeal Hosein who was unbeaten on eight added 23 runs in the final two overs to take the score to 145 for eight wickets.

Man of the Match pacer Saqib Mahmood who took the early wickets at the start of the West Indies innings captured for 17 runs, and Overton picked up three wickets for 20 runs.

Sports

ENGLAND LEADS WEST INDIES 2-0

Article by David Harris

England took a 2-0 lead over the West Indies with an emphatic seven wicket victory at Kensington Oval on Sunday night.

Chasing 159 runs for victory captain Jos Buttler smashed a 45-ball 83 which included eight fours and six sixes to guide England to victory in 14.5 overs; Will Jacks contributed 38, and Liam Livingstone made an unbeaten 23 runs.

England had an early setback in the chase when opener Phil Salt who made a century in the first match was dismissed by left –arm spinner Akeal Hosein for a golden duck; but Buttler and Jacks shared a massive second partnership of 129 runs that placed the visitors on the road to victory.

Buttler and Jacks were dismissed by medium pacer Romario Shepherd in the 13^th over with the score on 130 by then England needed 29 runs to win the match, and Livingstone blasted three fours and a six to take the Englishmen over the line in the 15^th over. Shepherd took two wickets for 42 runs from 3. 5 expensive overs.

Earlier, the West Indies scored 158 for eight wickets after England won the toss and decided to field. Even though England bowlers were wayward with their lines they picked up the early wickets of Brandon King, Evin Lewis and Roston Chase to leave the West Indies wobbling at 35 for three wickets in the fourth over.

Captain Rovman Powell made 43 and Shepherd got 22 but their score 158 was insufficient to prevent the West Indies suffering a second consecutive defeat by England in two days.

Pacer Saqib Mahmood took two wickets 20 runs, Liam Livingstone captured two wickets for 16 runs with a mixture of off-breaks and leg-breaks, and off-spinner Dan Mousley picked two wickets for 29 runs.