BRIDGETOWN-- The Barbados Olympic Association Inc. (BOA) in conjunction with the National Sports Federations (NSFs) will stage a month-long sports tournament to mark Barbados’ 50th Independence anniversary.
The games which are intended to highlight the best of local sporting talent, and expose Barbadian sports fans to live high-level competition, will commence on November 16, 2016 with at opening ceremony to be held at the BOA’s headquarters in Will. The games conclude on December 11.
Coined “25 sports in 27 days”, elite athletes from Netball, Basketball, Wrestling, Surfing, Badminton, Shooting, Cycling, Boxing, Table-Tennis, Swimming, Field Hockey, Squash and Water Polo, will face off against both local and overseas competitors.
BOA’s Independence Games Committee Chairman Trevor Browne said the initiative was to honour Barbados’ golden jubilee and to promote sport as a nation builder.
“This is Barbados’ 50th Anniversary of Independence; it is a milestone for the country, and we at the BOA decided to put on a grand event to celebrate this achievement,” he said, “This is the first time we have held a tournament of this magnitude. We are pulling out all the stops to ensure that the event is not only exciting for patrons and athletes, but that the display is of quality standard.”
He added that it was also a great opportunity for Barbadians to come out and witness what local sports had to offer, and it also provided them with a chance to see some of the less mainstream sports.
“We have sports such as Judo, Orienteering, Synchro-Swimming, Weightlifting, Fencing, Archery and Rugby on the cards. It is shaping up to be an exciting month of sporting activities, and we are in talks to have these games on an annual basis as part of the Independence celebrations. These games will also help to create opportunities for Corporate Barbados to invest in sport through sponsorship and partnership,” Browne said.
One of the highlights of the tournament includes a Beach Games on November 20, at Pirate’s Cove, which will see competition in seven water sports, Beach Volleyball, Handball, Kayaking, Orienteering, Sailing, Surfing, Wrestling and Wushu.
There will also be a public lecture: ‘Doping in Sport- What You Need To Know’ on November 24, at Solidarity House at 7 p.m until 9 p.m. The games will kick off with Basketball from November 12-14, with surfing closing out the games on December 10.
The public is kindly asked to visit the BOA’s Facebook page for the full schedule of events.
