I Dub You August 5, the Shafiqua Maloney Day!

Let me start by first congratulating Handal Roban, who I believe is only 21, for representing this country at the 2024 Paris Olympics. As Shafiqua said when commenting on her performance, “I belong here.” The same can be said for him even though he did not make it to the finals, but he is a young man and with support we can expect great things from him. Well about Shafiqua, one can expect when she returns to her native land, a grand welcome, which of course, she really deserves. But some of us should bow our heads in shame given what she had to go through to get to Paris and to represent our country. Many will, of course, be jumping on the bandwagon but what’s new!

Monday, August 5, was a day in SVG, like none before. We were all Vincentians, many skipping afternoon work to go to Heritage Square or wherever there were televisions to follow the young Vincentian Shafiqua as she struggled for Olympic glory. Not even at Carnival and political rallies have we seen crowds so gripped, eyes focused on the television screens to get a glimpse of the Vincy heroine whom some hoped their shouts would have taken her through. She missed the medal table by about .24 seconds, crossing the line for fourth place. That fourth-place finish was the highest by a Caribbean woman for 28 years, that is since 1996 when the Cuban, Ana Quiros (Ana Fidelia Quirot Morẻ) achieved a silver medal. She is still regarded as one of the best female 800 metres runners of all time. To be linked with Ana and to achieve something that was last done 28 years ago, that is getting to the finals, speaks volumes.

With social media widely available, Shafiqua’s name and fortunes spread far and wide. Where is this country, as Bassy would call it ‘Sin Vincent’, a tiny country of 100 thousand or 110 thousand (we cannot decide which it is)? Let us however not forget that Dominica with just over 73,000 people got a gold. All hats off to Dominica. But there was more to the story. It was not only that this small country had a female athlete in the finals, but her story was a Real Story. We have to thank SportsMax for having interviewed her and brought her woes to the world. It was that story that kicked things off, brought her some support and ensured that she got to Paris, even though that support was rather late. She obviously missed participating in some games outside the US. Her homelessness- at times, having to live in dormitories and being provided with shelter by some generous persons. She was unable to pay her Coach, but he obviously saw the potential in her and continued to train her. All thanks to him. There were many other challenges as one would expect, special nutrition, buying supplements and other things that athletes need.

Her plight was aired on Social Media and support began to come in. The tale of a young Vincentian woman that had the potential to achieve a medal at the Olympics. Support came from individuals, companies like Coreas, ECGC, KFC, Swift Pac and from the Government. SVG could do nothing less. And there was she in Paris, getting third place in the Heats with automatic entry into the Finals. And she nearly did it at the Finals, missing out on a third-place finish and Bronze medal by .24 seconds. Something that I had feared, happened. She was boxed in and had to find an opportunity to get out of it. As she put it, “I tried to break free on the homestretch, but I was still confined … For the longest time, I wanted to just go outside and move…”. When she did it was too late. But to be fourth at the Olympics competing with the best around the world is no mean feat. When you looked at the expression on her face and the effort, she put into getting to the finish line you have to realise that it was even more than what was good for Shafiqua. She knew her people in SVG were following closely and wishing her all the best. So, part of it was to bring glory to SVG. An Olympic medal was not only for Shafiqua but also for SVG.

Now we have to move beyond Shafiqua and to put things in place that will assist her as she moves into other competitions and begin to look at the next Olympics. SVG appeared a united country on August 5. It was all about Shafiqua and SVG. That is why I dubbed August 5 Shafiqua Maloney’s Day. We have hopefully begun to see the importance of Athletics and Sports generally. It goes beyond supporting our athletes but giving more support to Sports in the School system. Offering annual scholarships, including some for coaches at all levels. As young athletes excel at school, we have to let them appreciate the value of education. The 28-year-old American, Gabby Thomas, who won gold for the 200 metres is a graduate of Harvard and spoke about its impact on her. Our education really needs a Revolution. Let the process begin! Shafiqua, Our next Sports Ambassador?

Dr Adrian Fraser is a social commentator and historian