SPRINT queen Kelly Ann Baptiste and national 200m champ Rondel Sorrillo were crowned the National Association of Athletic Administration (NAAA) Senior Sportswoman and Sportsman of the Year respectively at a gala awards ceremony on Sunday at the Crowne Plaza Hotel, Port-of-Spain.
Baptiste, the second female in TT to have won a medal at the World Championship, was an outright winner among the women despite a challenge from shot putter Cleopatra Borel-Brown who received a silver medal at the Pan American Games and was a gold medallist at the Central American and Caribbean Games (CAC).
Baptiste’s bronze medal performance at the World Championship followed her victory at the IAAF Diamond League Meet in France last year. Her award was collected by her mother Hazel Taylor as Baptiste has gone back to her US club to prepare for the Olympic Games in London, England later this year.
Baptiste, who was voted the Trinidad and Tobago Olympic Committee (TTOC) Sportswoman of the Year and received the Female Athlete of the Year and the Sports Performance of the Year at the recent Spirit of Sports Awards at the Hyatt Regency Hotel, will now shoulder the responsibility of a medal at the Olympics.
Meanwhile, Sorrillo got the nod ahead of a number of good performances last year including Richard Thompson’s blistering 9.85 seconds dash at the National Track and Field Championship, Keston Bledman’s wind-assisted 9.93 seconds triumph at the Stars Athletics Sprint Series in Florida and Quincy Wilson’s bronze medal performance at the CAC Games where he set a new national record.
Michelle Lee Ayhe was also an outright winner for the Junior Athlete of the Year (Female) after winning gold at the Pan Am Games and silver at the Carifta Games. She was also a semi-finalist at the World Championship and was among an outstanding 4x100 metres relay team which finished fourth at the World Championships.
There was a tie for the Junior Athlete of the Year (Male) as brothers Keshorn and Elton Walcott were inseparable. The younger Walcott (Keshorn) secured gold in the Javelin at the Carifta, Southern Games and at the Junior Championship. Walcott (Elton), a triple jumper leapt to gold at the Pan Am Juniors, Carifta Games and also at the Junior Championships.
Sheniqua Bascombe of Cougars and Jamali Lynch of the Memphis Pioneers copped the first Under-9 category awards for female and male respectively while Cougars also claimed the first Juvenile Champion Club of the Year.
There was an upset for the Senior Club of the Year award which went to Neon Trackers. The awards had been dominated by Memphis Pioneers who earned the top prize in local track and field for the past seven years. However, Memphis Pioneers did not leave empty-handed as they were voted the Junior Club of the year.
Among the Road Runners- Richard Jones and Tonya Nero claimed the top awards for men and women respectively.
Also, Rawle Raphael was the sole inductee into the NAAA Hall of Fame.
By Walter Alibey
Source: www.newsday.co.tt