Sports Minister maintains healthy lifestyle

MINISTER OF Sport and Youth Affairs Shamfa Cudjoe is keen on maintaining a healthy lifestyle, and hopes people in general will pay attention to their health.

Cudjoe featured in Saturday’s third annual Tobago Sea to Sea event. In the half-marathon, which was contested in Goodwood, Cudjoe finished with a time of three hours and 31 minutes. Asked if, as the Sports Minister, she was making a statement about people pursuing healthy lifestyles, Cudjoe replied, “To be honest, I didn’t need to send a message. I did it for me. And I think (for) everybody, physical health is a part of life.

“Everybody needs to take care of their health,” she said. “Physical health is very important for long life, for good health, for good strength. You can’t enjoy life unless you have good health, so I try to do it.

“Remember, in the Ministry of Sport, our focus is not just to get people involved in the regular, traditional disciplines of sport but also to promote physical activity and a healthy lifestyle.” Cudjoe, who replaced Darryl Smith as Sports Minister in April, pointed out, “I hope it serves its purpose to keep me fit and to keep me running and active, and relieving stress. I also hope that it serves a purpose to tell young people that we need to get out there, enjoy the environment and take care of ourselves.”

This was Cudjoe’s second participation in the Sea to Sea Marathon.

“I’m accustomed doing races,” she said. “I started doing 5K races about 2014 or 2015, and then I did the first Sea to Sea Marathon in 2016…I did the half-marathon.”

She wasn’t able to do it last year, she said, “Because I have a back problem. This year I decided I’m going to go back in and do it. I jog and run to keep fit, and to relieve stress.”

She is willing to compete in a few more events before the end of 2018.

“I want to do the Glow Run in August in Tobago.

“Also, my friends are inviting me to do the UWI (half-marathon). I’m not sure about that yet, based on the timing. I always wanted to participate in the Run Barbados, which takes place in December. So that’s the next half-marathon I’m looking at.”