Invest in the youths!

IT IS NO empty pronouncement that you cannot teach an old dog new tricks; neither are the notions that the youths are the future, or the children of today are the men and women of tomorrow.

Indeed, these are realities and sayings which relate to all spheres of endeavour, hence sports is not exempt.

If you take a look around St Vincent and the Grenadines and do an audit of the programmes of most of the national entities responsible for the various sporting disciplines, it would be fair to assess and conclude that not enough attention is paid to youth development.

We often hear the lamentations of the underwhelming performances of our senior outfits at regional competitions, and rightly so.

Further scrutiny will point to the lack of a foundation that buttresses the God- given abilities of our sports people.

Yes, we have heard the hue and cry ever so often, however, the situation has been left to evolve unattended and heading with breakneck speed to a crisis.

Admittedly, there are sports programmes that are specifically for the youths, ages 4 to 14.

At this stage they are rife for learning and the acquisition of skills and attitudes that are needed to excel in sports.

One, though, gets the impression that not enough energy and financial resources are expended on these programmes.

Added, it can be gleaned that they are not well planned, devoid of databases, and not staffed with the best possible coaches.

As a consequence, we have been spinning top in mud, reinventing the wheel to no avail.

Therefore, the situation must be arrested with some urgency, otherwise the wails and pains will get louder and more excruciating.

This is against the backdrop, that there is no shortage of acknowledgement that St Vincent and the Grenadines’ sporting landscape lacks a nation -wide youth development programme, as efforts were made in the past to do so but turned out to be unsustained overtures.

For instance, about a decade ago, there was a big splash and drive to focus on the Long-Term Athlete Development (LTAD), which fosters structured youth programmes that incrementally hone skills and ultimately, better performances.

Then, the leads in the project were the Caribbean Association of National Olympic Committees (CANOC), and the Sport For Life of Canada.

Since, what has become of the idea? Has it been abandoned? Has the mandate been carried out? If so, what was the success rate for those who followed the data?

Instructively, the national associations/ federations and unions, who were part of that implementation process, need to revisit the idea, recalibrate, and reset, as having a well planned and executed pathway towards development is top on the list of priorities.

These entities are fully cognizant that a consistent youth development programme or some semblance of it guarantees a flow of skilled athletes and ready feeder for clubs.

What follows is a seamless transition into the national teams and best of all into professional setups.

More so, youth programmes avoid gaps in talent, and escape having ageing rosters endemic to some disciplines here in St Vincent and the Grenadines, and the reliance on foreign based players.

Beyond the production of top-quality sportsmen and women, which of course is a good target to aim at, having the youths engaged in a controlled environment as early as possible, has other social spin-offs.

Eventually, by-products are derived from youth development programmes, laying that social foundation for cohesion, adherence to norms and the instilling of a discipline that has life-long positive outcomes.

But the entire process must start at the club level first and foremost. That is the cradle, and critically, must be nurtured, nourished, stabilized, and fortified.