Thirty-six years and counting…

As St Vincent and the Grenadines nears its 36th year since gaining political independence, there will always be a hung jury as to whether we have maximized the sporting opportunities since 1979.

One thing is certain though, is that we are not in the same position as we were back then.{{more}}

Rewinding, we were on the verge of attaining nationhood, and with it came excitement and an air of anticipation.

Many young teenagers in the late 1970’s were bubbly about the sporting prospects, given that discussions on Black Consciousness were pregnant at the time.

When immediately following the attainment of independence, St Vincent and the Grenadines made a telling statement on Caribbean football, placing second to Haiti in the regional finals held in Suriname, it further ripened the hype.

Two years later, when the team came in second, it was acknowledged that we were a football force to be reckoned with in the region.

That same year, the first One Day International came to our shores, as West Indies took on England at Arnos Vale.

Winston Davis, after becoming a feared fast bowler for the Windward Islands in the regional four-day competition, went on the West Indies team.

Almost scripted, he recorded the best bowling figures in a One Day International in the 1983 World Cup, staged in England.

His figures of 7 for 51 stood as a world record for some 18 years.

At one point, Pamenos Ballantyne was the star of the Caribbean roads, winning distance races at will, including a period of near invincibility, especially in the Trinidad and Tobago marathon.

Eswort Coombs took the 400m men’s gold medal at the World University Games in Japan in 1995.

A year after, he was a semi-finalist in the same event at the Los Angeles Olympics.

Those high points were at the point when we were exporting track and field athletes to US universities at will.

Also, Adonal Foyle made it to the NBA and has been the lone Vincentian to so.

Interestingly, their flights came in conditions far worse than today, even though there is still a hue and cry for facilities.

But with the improved conditions – an upgraded Arnos Vale Playing Field; more playing fields and hard courts strewn all over; a six-court tennis complex at Villa; a place called home for squash; along with greater access to technology, travel and the likes, there is still a missing ingredient.

Over the last decade our achievements have been sporadic, with few Vincentians making it to the senior West Indies team and when they do, with little permanency.

A second place in the Caribbean Football Union’s Cup, followed up with our lone entrance to the CONCACAF Gold Cup in 1996, could be inked as an achievement.

We have gotten sprinkles of medals at the annual Junior Carifta Games and at the CAC, NACAC and Pan American Games, with Kineke Alexander being the most decorated.

One cannot count out Natasha Mayers’ gold medal at the Commonwealth Games in 2010, albeit after the first and second places were disqualified.

Mention must be made of Sophia Young and Sancho Lyttle who made it to the WNBA, after going through the US school system.

Likewise, Ezra Hendrickson in the MLS in the USA, Rodney Jack – England; Wesley Charles – Ireland, as well as Cornelius Huggins and Marlon James – Malaysia, can be considered our flag bearers, who for a sustained period made a living from football.

Netball, which was once our bragging rights, enjoyed a period on the regional pinnacle between 1992 and 2002, but has subsequently faded into oblivion, such that we are no longer noticed as a name to be reckoned with.

Only a solitary win at the Under-16 age group in 1999 and tons of titles at the OECS Under-23 level appear in the victory column with consistency.

The other sporting disciplines, in the interim, have in some way brought national recognition, although miniscule.

Why then can’t we now say with a sense of surety that our teams and individuals are going to go out there and make us proud?

This could be the point for reflection, introspection and thought processing, as we celebrate and commemorate another year of political independence.

Sports, as we have seen and experienced, engenders national pride and gives all a lift in spirit and hope in these trying times.

We cannot be what we were thirty-six years ago, but for sure we can strive always for the optimum.

Happy Independence to all !!!