Caribbean Sports Round-Up

News Americas, NEW YORK, NY, Fri. Mar. 15, 2018: Here are some of the news heating things up on the Caribbean sports scene for this week:

Who Will Lead The West Indies Cricket Board For The Next Term?

The election for President and Vice President of the West Indies Cricket Board is heating up as the countdown begins to voting for new leaders on March 24th in Jamaica.

The current president, Dave Cameron, has already served two terms and many say his leadership has left much to be desired just like the West Indies cricket teams’ performance.

The Jamaican national, who has been in the post since replacing Julien Hunte on March 27, 2013, is facing a serious challenge this year. Former St. Kitts and Nevis minister and West Indies team manager, Ricky Skerritt is challenging Cameron for the post.

Skerrit’s Vice-Presidential candidate, Dr. Kishore Shallow, is challenging Emmanuel Nathan of Dominica for that post.

Cameron’s time in office has been marked by numerous controversy including conflicts with players and coaches and the refusal to adopt the Barriteau Report which was commissioned by the CARICOM Prime Ministerial Committee on the Governance of West Indies Cricket, which had recommended the immediate dissolution of the board whose governance structure it described as “antiquated” and “anachronistic” and the “appointment of an Interim Board whose structure and composition will be radically different from the now proven, obsolete governance framework.

In 2017, Cameron and the Board was accused by the Prime Minister of Trinidad and Tobago, Dr. Keith Rowley of being part of “a small clique of people” who had hijacked West Indies cricket.

Skerritt says Cricket West Indies is becoming a “Cameron-centric organization” and less of a cricket-centric entity and he wants to help find sustainable solutions to the challenges facing West Indies cricket.

But so far, however, Skerritt and Shallow have only been publicly endorsed by the Trinidad and Tobago and the Leeward Islands’ cricket boards. Barbados, Guyana, and Windward Islands are expected to cast their lot with the much-disliked Cameron despite the state of West Indies cricket and the disgust of fans.  The direction of the vote of the Jamaica board is not known but could prove critical to the outcome of the election. The Jamaica board is headed by president Billy Heaven who reportedly has not always seen ‘eye to eye’ with Cameron.

Haitian Roots World No.1 Tennis Star Loses At BNP Paribas Open

World No.1 tennis star, Haitian roots Naomi Osaka, is keeping positive despite being ousted from the BNP Paribas Open with a 6-3, 6-1 loss to Belinda Bencic in the Round of 16.

The US and Australian Open champ lost to the streaking Swiss, who came out firing and never let up.

“Honestly, I think at a time like this with that scoreline, I would usually feel very depressed and sad,” Osaka told reporters after the match.  “But I feel pretty good right now, because I think, given the circumstances, I tried my best and I don’t really have any regrets.”

Osaka will leave Indian Wells with the No.1 ranking intact, however, and will head to the Miami Open on March 18th as the top seed. Her sister, Maria Osaka, is also set to play at the Miami Open.

Usain Bolt Shows Up At NYC City Hall To Tout The Bolt Scooter

Jamaican Olympic sprinter Usain Bolt turned up at New York City Hall Tuesday to hawk an electric scooter named after him.

The Bolt Scooter is an aluminum-framed scooter with 10-inch wheels  that cost $1 to rent plus 15 cents every minute. The battery-powered scooters can zip around city streets at 15 mph for 20 miles before losing their charge.

However, while the scooters are already operating on the streets in Alexandria and Arlington, Va., and Fort Lauderdale, Fla. they are not yet street legal in New York.

It is unclear how much Bolt is being paid to promote the scooter but he did joke: “The first thing people always say to me when I get somewhere late is that why didn’t you run? So now I actually have the Bolt scooter to get there quicker.”