Eight Memphis Pioneers athletes earn US, China schols

FOUR-time Carifta Games shot put medallist, Ianna Roach, is one of eight athletes to earn athletics scholarships to colleges in the United States and China, thanks to both their academic achievements and their successes at their local club Memphis Pioneers.

Roach, who also competed for TT at the World Junior and Commonwealth Youth Games, will attend the University of Iowa to pursue a degree in journalism and mass communications with a minor in law.

Along with the 19-year-old, Ian Thomas, Clement Campbell, Renaldo Noreiga-Alleyne, Kion Benjamin, Akil Boisson, Che Nanton and Kobe John, all of whom are either sprinters or hurdlers, have also sealed their places in various institutions scattered across the US, with Nanton, the only exception, headed to China.

The athletes were celebrated for their achievements at a ceremony hosted by Memphis Pioneers at the club’s high performance gym on Fitzblackman Drive, Woodbrook, yesterday.

Roach lauded the club’s coaches for their commitment to the athletes, which she said was largely responsible for her success.

“Memphis Pioneers provided us with coaches who aren’t just coaches; they are dedicated individuals who look out for each and every one of us and they is always a shoulder to cry on,” she said.

“These aren’t just coaches; these are superheroes with whistles, stop watches and a deadly workout.”

While admitting the tireless commitment required to reach an elite level, Roach said her efforts were not in vain.

“Being a track and field athlete might sound glamorous and easy to some, but it isn’t. Having to go home and gather up this will power to study for another four to five hours seems like a sport all on its own. But if it wasn’t for this sport,” she added, “I wouldn’t have developed the amount of discipline I have.

“When training six days a week as we do, we don’t have time to procrastinate; we just have to get it done when we can.

“There is no time for socialising. We socialise with each other at training, and in most cases, our training partners become our best friends because they are always, always there.”

At 16, Nanton is the youngest athlete to depart. The 200-metre and 400m specialist will attend United World College in China but has not confirmed what subjects he will pursue.

Thomas, 24, who graduated with an associated in criminal justice at Coahoma Community College, in Mississippi, is moving on to Oklahoma City University to complete a bachelor’s of arts in the same field. He is a 100m and 200m sprinter.

Campbell Jr, a Carifta Games bronze medallist in the long jump and a sprinter, will attend the University of Arkansas, Pine Bluff, and is also unsure what he will study.

Nineteen-year-old Noreiga-Alleyne, a 100m and 200m sprinter will attend Holy Family University in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, will pursue a degree in architecture.

A TT representative at the World Junior Championships, Benjamin, who is also a 100m and 200m sprinter, moves onto the University of Minnesota to study for a degree in kinesiology – a scientific study of human or non-human body movement.

Akil Boisson, 19, a 200m and 400m runner and Carifta medallist, will depart for St Francis College to pursue psychology.

The only hurdler, Kobe John, who trains in the 110m and 400m hurdles distances, and the regular quarter-mile races, will pursue a degree in business management at ASA College, Miami.

Memphis Pioneers’ renowned coach Dr Ian Hypolite beamed at the successes of his charges, but said he was not particularly surprised on the athletes’ achievements as the club puts special emphasis on education. The club has secured scholarships for some 84 of its athletes over the years.