Joseph loses bid for NACAC presidency

Vincentian Keith Joseph lost his bid to become President of the North America, Central America and Caribbean (NACAC) area International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) representative.{{more}}

Joseph lost 14-13 in a tight race for the top post against Jamaican Neville “Teddy” Mc Cook. The two squared off in Japan August 21, when the NACAC held it congress ahead of the World Championships.

Reports are that Joseph was absent when the votes were cast. This could have been a crucial factor in the final outcome.

Joseph outlined to SEARCHLIGHT last week Friday why he thought he was the better candidate and the obvious choice.

He mentioned age as a factor and what he brought to the table as opposed to Mc Cook.

But despite Joseph’s youthfulness and achievements, he was unable to unseat Mc Cook.

Further advancing his acumen, Joseph said, “Mc Cook has been at the helm for eight he has not brought one thing to the region”.

In his corner, Joseph, despite not being the area representative, pointed to his securing a three year sponsorship deal for the annual Carifta Games as well as bringing the Right On Track ( ROT), a talent identification programme to the Windward islands, which has been subsequently spreading to the wider eastern Caribbean.

He also pointed to his opponent’s failure to develop relationships with the Central American countries and a weakness going into the crucial voting.

The 53-year-old Joseph’s overall vision, if he had been given the opportunity to lead, was to see “NACAC’s emergence as the leading continental area in international athletics”.

His mission was “to facilitate a unified, comprehensive, scientific approach to the development of athletics in NACAC”.

Joseph, who had said he had the support of many of the affiliates from within the region with his plan to unseat McCook, also said he was cognisant that it is an election “and anything can happen”.

But despite this support, he was unable to garner enough support to take him over the hump.

Joseph has a long list of accomplishments behind him. A former athlete in his birthplace Trinidad and Tobago, Joseph is former president of the Grenada Amateur Athletics Association, and Grenada Olympic Committee.

He is the current president of Team Athletics SVG, a post he has held for 19 years, truncated into two tenures. Joseph was at the helm of the then St. Vincent and the Grenadines Amateur Athletics Association (SVGAAA) from 1986 to 1997, then from 1999 to the present time.

Joseph drafted the constitution that effected the name change in 2004.

One of the top technical delegates in the region, Joseph has overseen many regional meets.

A holder of an Executive Masters in Sports Organisation Management, Joseph listed among the highlights of his involvement in athletics “the creation of a proposal that has been accepted by Olympic Solidarity to launch the UWI/Olympic Solidarity/IAAF Certificate in the Art and Science of Coaching Athletics, a three month programme at the SPEC UWI in Trinidad and Tobago”.

This programme is slated to begin in January 2008.(RT)