EXCELLENT YOUTH

LINDELL SWEEN and Samantha Hosein copped the Male and Female Youth Champion of the Year accolades at the Atlantic Youth Excellence in Sports (YES) award ceremony yesterday.

The function was staged at the Hilton Trinidad and Conference Centre, St Ann’s.

Sween, a student of La Pastora Government School, was a key member of their victorious Boys Under-15 football team who claimed the 2018 national title. Hosein, in the field of cricket, had a fine all-round return for her school San Francique Presbyterian, scoring 378 runs and taking 21 wickets, in nine matches.

The 12-year-old Sween, who lives in Santa Cruz, said, “I feel great. This is my first major award.”

He continued, “2018 was a great year for me. I travelled (to) Spain and Mexico. Those experiences (were) great for me. I’m looking to go bigger places to continue playing.”

The petite Hosein said, “I feel proud about myself and I want to move on more and more. (2018) was nice, fun and exciting.”

Asked what stood out for her, the 13-year-old Woodland resident replied, “The final when I got four wickets and I was named the Best Bowler.”

Despite Hosein’s figures of 4/15, San Francique were beaten by Cunaripo Presbyterian, by 37 runs, at the Brian Lara Cricket Academy, Tarouba.

La Pastora Government copped a pair of titles – Team of the Year and Fair Play, both in football.

The Santa Cruz-based school was crowned Boys U-15 National Champions after defeating Carenage Boys Government 3-1 in the final at the Hasely Crawford Stadium, Mucurapo.

According to their principal Carolyn Patino, “We want to ensure that the school and community work closely together to get the best for our students and we create an environment where our students want to compete for our school and community in every aspect of their lives.”

The sport of track and field was another major winner at the awards, with Kurt Cruickshank adjudged the Coach of the Year and Joy Gabriel-Neptune voted as the Administrator of the Year.

Cruickshank is the coach of the Caroni district team who had a successful performance at the 2018 Atlantic National Games while Gabriel-Neptune is the treasurer at the National Primary Schools Track and Field Association.

Camille Salandy, manager, sustainability and corporate communications at Atlantic, said, “Atlantic created these awards because we recognised that inspiring and encouraging our young people is one of the key ways that we can help move this country forward.”

She added, “Primary school sport has continued to grow in prominence across TT, and we hope that these celebrations, and the platform we give to our young people to put their love for sport into practice, play a key role in their lives on and off the field.”

According to Salandy, “The world demands balanced people, and with the right support at home, at school and on the field, it is possible for your daughter or son to balance academics with sport. “Success in the classroom and on the field can open doors to scholarships at the tertiary level, connections that will prove invaluable later in life and yes, even World and Olympic medals.”