Shelley-Ann Griffith Appointed BOA’s New Assistant Secretary General

The Barbados Olympic Association Inc. (BOA) is pleased to announce the appointment of Shelley-Ann Griffith as its new Assistant Secretary General. Griffith, who previously held the position of director was appointed by the Board of Directors on October 7, to fill the post made vacant by Cameron Burke’s elevation to the post of Vice President at the recently held Annual General Meeting.

Griffith was first elected to the Board September last year.  She is not new to sports administration, however, having been involved in sports at various levels in a number of sporting disciplines including taekwondo, football, cricket, weightlifting and chess. She expressed that she is very keen to take on this new role within the BOA.

“It is a privilege having volunteered with a number of national federations to be able to contribute at this macro level and experience sports administration from a different perspective. It is not about the position, but the ability to help in any way that I can and the ability to do what is necessary regardless of the title,” Griffith stated.

Griffith has been volunteering her time to advance sports in Barbados and across the region for many years. Hers has been a life of service, which helped to nurture her passion for sports administration. From an early age she volunteered along with her parents through the then Amateur Athletic Association of Barbados, to help with fundraising activities and to work at sporting competitions such as the CARIFTA Games.  However, her involvement grew through her son’s participation in sports, especially in football— she volunteered to help, and seamlessly transitioned into the role of the team’s manager. This early experience also laid the foundation for her managing the weightlifting team at the 2014 Commonwealth Games in Scotland.

“I do the things that others don’t like to do – the players don’t like to do them, the coaches don’t like to do them, but I am happy enough to do them… Other people might tell you that it is in my genes too. My grandfather was Mitchie Hewitt, he has been recognised for his contribution to cricket but was not necessarily known for his batting and bowling. He showed me that you can really make a difference being an administrator as well,” she stated.

Griffith has also brought her professional skills as an accountant to bear in her role as a sports administrator.

“I helped because people needed help. I am an organised person and I guess the profession that I am in, especially in the early years as an auditor, played a part. I was deadline driven, so for me dealing with deadlines, putting things together and managing teams was natural and I was happy to be in the background – let the coaches coach, let the players play – I don’t have a problem doing the other stuff”.

President of the BOA, Sandra Osborne said that from the outset Griffith has made her presence felt on the Board in a very positive way “I welcome Shelley to the post of Assistant Secretary General. Although she is one of the newest members of the board, she has demonstrated a depth of knowledge and creative insight that belies her quiet outward appearance. She is level-headed and hardworking, and I am confident that she will do justice to the role as the first female to take on this position.”

Griffith who holds a Basic Sports Administration Certificate from the BOA, is not only a member of the BOA’s Board of Directors, but is a member of the Barbados Football Association’s Finance Committee and was appointed to the Member Governance Review Commission of the Pan American Weightlifting Federation in April, 2020.

Griffith having accepted the post of Assistant Secretary General now leaves a director post vacant. The BOA’s Board of Directors has indicated that the National Federations will have the opportunity to fill this post at its next General Assembly.