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THE JAMAICA Olympic Association (JOA) announced a new three-year partnership with the Racers Track Club yesterday which is geared towards the development of Jamaica’s track and field athletes, coaches and administrators.
Speaking in a press conference yesterday at the JOA head office, JOA president Christopher Samuda announced the partnership and described it as a milestone agreement for Jamaican track and field.
“The Jamaica Olympic Association is very pleased to partner with Racers Track Club in this milestone event,” said Samuda.
“It is a milestone because both entities are invested in sporting development and, more critically, in the development of the primary assets in our sports, which is, of course, our athletes.”
Samuda said the partnership with Racers Track Club will be geared towards further development of Jamaican athletics and providing a platform for local athletes.
He said it is important for the JOA to remain invested in creating pathways for athletes and providing structure that is geared towards success.
“This is something that is a part of the infrastructure in the development of sport,” he said.
“We can’t pursue success unless there is a structure.
“As I’ve repeatedly said, there can’t be an Olympic swimmer without a 50-metre swimming pool and a basketball player, aspiring of the Olympic stage, his dreams will be shattered if he does not have a court.”
Veteran coach Glen Mills, who was also in attendance at the press conference, welcomed the partnership with open arms.
A man with decades of experience under his belt, Mills said he will always champion initiatives that are geared towards the development of athletes.
“This is a very important occasion,” he said.
“We at Racers are very happy to collaborate and to work with the Olympic Association.
DEVELOPMENT
“As the president had pointed out, it is in the interest of our athletes. For a man who has been, over 60 years, working for our athletes, I am always welcome to working with anything that is progressive and beneficial towards their development.”
The partnership will see the JOA support the Racers Track Club in several initiatives over a three-year period.
The partnership will also see local athletes who compete throughout the JOA’s ‘Destiny Series’ offered a spot in the annual Racers Grand Prix, granted they achieve a set entry standard.
The partnership will also impact coaches in Jamaica, as Racers CEO Devon Blake explained.
Through their collaboration, Blake said coaching education will see a vast improvement, with a special focus on incorporating a better use of technology in their practices.
“One of the most important aspects of it has to do with the training of coaches and the introduction of a technological platform that will enable them to do biomechanics analysis, technical and tactical analysis,” Blake said.
“We will be able to collect data from a team perspective and from an individual athlete perspective.”
Though the current agreement is between the JOA and Racers Track Club, Samuda said this will not close the door on the association collaborating with other stakeholders.
In fact, Samuda said, other clubs and entities should view the partnership as an open invitation for them to engage with the JOA.
“There are a myriad of activations in sports that we can pursue and, therefore, this is not an exclusive agreement,” he said.
“There are several endeavours that can be pursued and we can say to other entities, we are here to partner with you in sports, in the interest of our athletes, our coaches, and our administrators.”
He added, “This is an invitation to stakeholders to come and speak with us to see how best we can make arrangements to see to the benefit of our sports.”
JOA’s agreement is geared towards boosting Jamaica’s chances at the 2028 Los Angeles Olympic Games, following a steady decline in the country’s medal tally since the 2012 London Olympics.
English (US) ·