Jomo has no answers on repairs at Dwight Yorke stadium

Sports Secretary Jomo Pitt had no answer to a question posed by Minority Leader Watson Duke at last Thursday’s plenary of the Tobago House of Assembly (THA) about short term plans to fix infrastructural problems at the Dwight Yorke stadium in Bacolet.

In the questions for oral answer session of the sitting at the Chamber in Scarborough, Duke, noted that use of the Dwight Yorke Stadium has been limited due to the need for infrastructural refurbishment, resulting in no access to the gym by athletes and no sporting activities happening after sunset because of the unavailability of lights on the field. Further noting a BOLT arrangement associated with stadium, and that the THA’s has responsibility for sport under the 5th schedule of the THA Act, he asked, “what are the short-term plans to deal with the required infrastructure refurbishment of the facilities which includes the steel structure, the gym and the lighting for the field?”

Said Pitt: “My response to the question posed; none.” He offered no explanation as to why he could provide no answer to the question.

The lack of information by the Sport Secretary on access to the stadium by Tobagonians for sporting activities comes as Paralympian gold medallist and two-time javelin and shot put record holder Akeem Stewart heads to Texas to train in the absence of facilities in Tobago, and more specifically the stadium.

Stewart, who had travelled to Japan to do a documentary on himself for the Tokyo 2020 Paralympics Games, said he also did several tests there during that time, and now has a better understanding of what he must do to become a better athlete, and that he also knows he cannot achieve this improvement in Tobago.

“I have to do more strength training which I doubt I can do in here the way things are going for athletes in Tobago where the necessary resources are unavailable. The stadium has the equipment but I do not have access to it so that will create a whole series of problems for me at once because there is nowhere to train. My next step is to leave Tobago very soon and go elsewhere to train,” he had told Newsday Tobago.

He said his Texas trip was made possible through sponsorships from BPTT and that he expects to develop and improve faster as a professional athlete training in Texas, compared to training in Tobago.

On November 9, Minister of State in the Office of the Prime Minister, Tobago East MP Ayanna Webster-Roy announced that the gym at the offices of the Central Administrative Services, Tobago (CAST) was available for use by the island’s elite athletes – a list of athletes who are eligible to utilise the gym is to be complied by the Division of Sports and forwarded to CAST.

Stewart said he was happy the gym has been reopened but it was not enough to make him stay in Tobago to train.

“Once I am in Tobago, I will take the opportunity to train. I would help other athletes but to further develop and improve I must leave because the gym does not have the equipment and lifting platforms for me to do the training required,” he said.