‘The General’ bows out

THE EDITOR: Yet another legendary journalist has passed on — Mervyn “The General” Wells. Veterans Wells and George “Georgie” Baptiste raised the bar in sports reporting in TT, with their pens spitting positive as well as critical messages in the Express newspapers. Both worked under the loveable Albert “Bootins” Alkins.

“Georgie,” now with Newsday, is fast becoming “the old man river” of sports reporting. He has outlived many of his peers. Nuff said.

Wells, who also did a stint at the Trinidad Guardian, is responsible for mentoring many journalists and promoting several athletic careers. He is best known for the hard-hitting column Why Keep It Quiet? What is ironic is that he went about his job in a quiet way.

He travelled extensively covering sporting events in foreign countries. He is best remembered for his dogged belief that legendary 100 metres sprinter Hasely “Rajpaul” Crawford would capture gold in Montreal 1976, when the armchair critics and the doubters were in their glee.

Condolences to Wells’s wife, children and relatives.

KEITH ANDERSON via e-mail