TRINIDAD AND Tobago football team coach Stephen Hart has slammed the decision by English League Two club Barnet FC to deny permission to wingback Gavin Hoyte to represent the “Soca Warriors” in their friendly football international against Mexico tomorrow at the Rio Tinto Stadium, Sandy, Utah, United States.

In fact, Hart made it emphatically clear that he will not tolerate any form of disrespect by players and/ or clubs towards the team, especially with the 2018 FIFA World Cup qualifiers slated to get going later this year.

According to a media release from the TT Football Association (TT FA) yesterday, “up to Friday Hoyte was in contact with the TT team manager William Wallace and all seemed set for his travel until he didn’t show up for his flight out of London along with fellow English-based pro Andre Boucaud.

Hoyte later admitted that the club had asked him to miss the encounter.

But there was no communication from the club and Wallace was not pleased that the decision was only taken at such a late stage.” Hart, in a media interview yesterday, confessed, “I was not pleased with how his club handled it. Basically they bullied the player. They told him he would be available and they would release him and then just hours before he is supposed to get on the plane they refuse to let him go and then you place the player in a situation where he is in a scrap with the club and the manager.

“I think that was very unprofessional and quite frankly they showed disrespect to the Trinidad and Tobago international programme because I am sure if it was England who called him, or Ireland or Wales, they would let him go,” Hart added. “It is certainly a situation that I am not going to look upon lightly with other players as well if it comes up. I will enter discussions with Gavin because he has to also put his foot down with the club.” The national team coach went on to say, “They didn’t say yes from the beginning because then they knew we could refer to the FIFA statutes.

Quite clearly going into World Cup is extremely important players are on top of their game and playing regularly for their clubs and of course we want to have proper relationships with the involved parties.

“There will be no situation like this come World Cup qualifying because we will have to know from the onset whether the player is coming or not and take action accordingly depending on the matter at hand,” Hart stated.

Hoyte’s brother Justin has been a regular member of the national team but he was not selected for tomorrow’s fixture.

Referring to the ongoing training camp at Salt Lake City, Hart noted, “I’m glad we got these days in because the altitude takes a bit of getting used to for the players.

They aren’t struggling but they have to adapt.” About the recalled trio of Trevin Caesar, Neveal Hackshaw and Marcus Joseph, the former Canada coach said, “they have done well. Caesar is coming in with a renewed energy and passion. I like how he has trained. Hackshaw has always been a player that seems to be all business. For a young man he has a very good professional attitude and I like that. “A lot of players when they look around at the squad, they realise there are new faces and there are positions to play for and fight for and this is essential for our team to move forward.”

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TRINIDAD AND Tobago finally tasted victory yesterday at the Pan Am Junior (U-17) Water Polo Championships in Kingston Jamaica, the TT Boys team beating the hosts to finish the preliminary competition as the better of the two Caribbean squads. However, the joy in the TT camp was shortlived, as the TT Girls lost a very close game to Puerto Rico a defeat that consigned them to sixth and last among the female teams in the Pan American region.

The win over Jamaica broke a sequence of defeats for both teams stretching back seven days to the start of the tournament. With both teams having finished bottom of their respective five-team groups, yesterday’s meeting decided 9th and 10th places in the Boys division.

TT shot into a 6-2 lead at the end of the opening quarter, and they maintained the five-goal difference (9-5) at the half; three unanswered goals in the third extended the lead to 12-5, and though the Jamaicans edged them 4-3 in the final stanza, the TT boys came away comfortable 15-9 winners.

The TT Girls were next into the pool at Jamaica’s National Aquatic Centre yesterday, battling with the Puerto Ricans for fifth place among the six female teams that are contesting the championships.

In terms of goals scored, the match was a much tighter contest than their final round league clash on Monday, when Puerto Rico rallied down the stretch to win 17- 14. After the first quarter, Puerto Rico were just ahead, 3-2, and as TT matched them for goals in the second, they led 6-5 at the half.

In the third, the TT girls scored three times to their opponents’ two, thus drawing level 8-8; however, they were unable to sustain the effort and Puerto Rico pulled away in the final quarter (3-1) for an 11-9 victory and 5th place.

The championships conclude today with more playoffs for Pan Am rankings in both divisions, culminating in the male and female bronze medal matches and the two finals that will bring the curtain down on the competition.

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Full credit to finalists Michele Lee Ahye, Kelly Ann Baptiste and Machel Cedenio, as well as our 4x100 ladies and 4x400 men’s team, which brought home medals from the World Championships in Beijing.

But we learnt one thing. There is a lot of work to be done ahead of next year’s Rio Olympics. Getting to the finals is a step in the right direction. It acts as a catalyst for the athlete, coach and management team to assess what needs to be done to turn finalists into medalists.

Cedenio, at 19, was seventh and can only improve with proper guidance. He will recall that earlier this year, he beat La Shawn Merritt but the American placed second in the final in a personal best time, ensuring that he was at his best for the Championships.

Next year will be similar but the rivalry becomes even more significant because it is the Olympic Games.

We must hope that the National Association of Athletic Administration (NAAA) works with the athletes for the future. Everyone needs to share a common goal. While some of these athletes will have managers with different mindset, the NAAA and the athlete must sit with the coaches and managers and set a clear pathway.

After the manager’s report on the World Championships is completed and addressed,  a meeting should be called as soon as possible. If the NAAA have to travel to meet the athlete and their team outside of T&T,  this must be a priority. I would suggest a team of three or four from the NAAA, comprising of highly influential and respected persons such as the president, Ephraim Serrette, and members such as Hasely Crawford, Dr Ian Hypolite and Dexter Voisin.

My other concern remains Keshorn Walcott, the 2012 Olympic gold medallist who failed to progress out of the first round. The most disturbing aspect is that this is the second World Championships where Walcott has struggled. His conqueror Kenya’s Julius Vego in 2012 finished 12th in the Olympic final.

At the press conference for the 2012 final, I recall that the first three were on stage and a number of questions were thrown by the Kenyan contingent, asking for tips on how to improve their thrower. This was a novel event for the Kenyans and you could see they were attempting to acquire as much knowledge as possible. To their credit, their athlete improved tremendously, not only throwing in excess of 92 metres but he is also the reigning Commonwealth Champion, where he also beat Walcott.

Unless Walcott does something quickly, he may find himself having to play second fiddle to the consistent Yego.

Walcott’s first throw was his longest but sadly he lost his balance and overstepped and so it was considered a foul throw and he nevered recovered. Similarly on Yego’s first throw, he fell and it was also declared null and void  but he recovered to make the final and then a few days later regained his composure to win.

 Walcott will have to examine his training regime. He cannot expect to gain in this country and must travel to Europe and get match fit and ready. As good as his local coach is, there is nothing to beat experience.  I also believe that because of early success, Walcott needs guidance and counseling and if it is that he cannot or will not listen to the NAAA, then another avenue has to be sought. The Olympic Committee president  Brian Lewis is very athlete driven and focused and I am certain he will ensure that a requisite team is put in place to assist some of the obvious needs of Walcott.

I believe that psychologist Dr Margaret Ottley should be hired immediately and brought home for the next ten to 12 months to work with as many athletes as possible in time for Rio.

Talent alone will not do it, we have to have the mental and emotional strength to go with it.

Without a doubt, our men’s 4x400 metres relay team can win gold in Rio. This current team of Renny Quow, La Londe Gordon, Deon Lendore, Machel Cedenio and Jarrin Solomon can reap success.

Once Jehue Gordon is fully recovered from his latest injury and with his studies completed, 2016 should be a strong year for him. His event was one of the few where the times were not as good as when he won in Moscow, which augurs well for him.

It was good to see the NAAA taking the bold step of incorporating some of our former athletes into their system. We have seen Niconnor Alexander getting involved and most recently Ato Boldon with the women's relay team. This group can become a long term core for success and with the leadership of Baptiste and the likes of Lee Ahye,  Hackett, Thomas, Khalifa St Fort and Kamira Durant, there is a lot to smile about.  

It looks promising, but as most men know, looks are sometimes deceiving.

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Trinidad and Tobago’s men’s team sprinters were last battling Brazil for the bronze medal, as the national team saw their first day of action at the Elite Pan American Track Cycling Championships in Santiago, Chile.
On a day where a national record was set in the men's team pursuit, the trio of Jude Codrington, Njisane Phillip and Kwesi Browne raced to a 44.441-second finish and qualified third fastest for the bronze medal ride against Brazil in the team sprint.
The Brazilians qualified with a time of 44.498 seconds while Canada and Venezuela battled for gold and silver after they qualified with times of 44.305 and 43.959 respectively. The ride-off for bronze took place after press time.
The team pursuit quartet of Varun Maharajh, Akil Campbell both of Rigtech Sonics, PSL's Jovian Gomez and Gavyn Nero of Team DPS were making their debut at the Championships. And they made an impressive start, producing a national-record-breaking time of 4:28.202 in the 4-kilometre team pursuit qualifying round, which was roughly 15 seconds faster than the previous record set at the Arima Velodrome this year at 4:42.696.

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The Trinidad and Tobago Beach Volleyball team competed in the fourth leg of the North, Central America and Caribbean Volleyball Confederation (NORCECA) Tour in Cuba over the weekend (26th – 31st August). There were fifteen participating countries in the tournament with TTO’s male and female teams finishing in the top 10.

Toco boys, Fabien Whitfield and Daneil Williams finished 5th behind 1. Nivaldo Díaz/Sergio González (CUB-A); 2.- Christham Redmann/Felipe Humana (CAN-A); 3.- Edwin M. Burik-Curt Toppel (USA); and 4.- Yendry Castillo/Liosbel Méndez (CUB-B).

While the female duo, Ayana Dyette and Malika Davidson finished 9th in the tournament out of the 15 teams.

Final Positions:
1.- Nivaldo Díaz/Sergio González (CUB-A);
2.- Christham Redmann/Felipe Humana (CAN-A);
3.- Edwin M. Burik-Curt Toppel (USA);
4.- Yendry Castillo/Liosbel Méndez (CUB-B);
5.- Fabien Whitfield/Daneil Williams (TTO);
6.- Aaron Nusbaun/Mike Plantinga (CAN-B);
7.- Marc Lomeli/Brian Kwasny (ISV);
8.- Rubén Mora/Miguel López (NCA);
9.- William Sánchez-Luis Castillo (DOM);
10.- Rooper Espinoza/Alexander Villegas (CRC);
11.- Franklin Flores/Armando Guatemala (ESA);  
12.- Senel Dupuy/Kelpes Vilmont (HAI);
13.- Marty Wood-Wilfredo Vega (HON);
14.- Furgil Ong A Fat/Zefanio Breinburg (SUR);
15.-Tevin St. Jean (LCA)/ Agustín Faulkner (LCA).
 
 
Final Positions:
1.- Sara Hughes-Kelly Claes (USA-A);
2.- Leila Martínez-Lidianni Echevarría (CUB-A);
3.- Karen Cope/Natalia Alfaro (CRC);
4.- Irene Hester- Caitlin Ledoux (USA-B);
5.- Gloria Santoyo/Stephanie Burnside (MEX-B);
6.- Kerri Smit/Victoria Cowley (CAN-B);
7.- Rachel Cockrell/Camille Saxton (CAN -A);
8.- Jennifer Batista/Raquel Ferrand (DOM);
9.- Ayana Dyette/Malika Davidson (TTO);
10.- Lianma Flores/Yanileidis Sánchez (CUB-B);
11.- Ana Ríos/Bibiana Candelas (MEX-A);
12.- Ana Villagrán/Aury Álvarez (GUA).- Dala Noel/Skye Faucher-Mondesir (LCA);
14.- Janice Valtes/Sigourney Kame (SUR);
15.- Amber Bennett/Valissia Brathwaite (ISV).

The Trinidad and Tobago Olympic Committee would like to extend congratulations to the Trinidad and Tobago (TTO) Badminton team on their performance at Caribbean Regional Badminton Confederation (CAREBACO) 2015. The TTO Badminton team returned home last weekend after concluding the Championships in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic which took place from the 26th – 30th August 2015.

In the junior category, Team Trinidad and Tobago tied for the bronze medal with Barbados behind 1st place Dominican Republic and 2nd place Jamaica. In the senior division Jamaica took the first place spot and Dominican Republic coming in second with TTO finishing in 3rd place with Barbados.

Tournament highlights for Team TTO was Travis Sinanan, Double Crown winner in Boys Singles Under 11 and Mixed Doubles Under 11 with a partner from Suriname. As well as Jada Renales who walked away with the most medals for TTO earning 1 team and 3 Individual medals. 

In addition, TTO’s senior women (Solangel Guzman, Leanna Castanda and Avril Plaza- Marcelle) all earned medals at the Individual Championships where Solangel Guzman was able to retain her title as Caribbean Singles Queen.

The overall medal count is as follows:

Team Event
Junior - Bronze
Senior - Bronze

Individual Event
Gold - 2.5
Silver - 4
Bronze – 8

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