Cudjoe says athletes’ health is paramount

JOEL BAILEY and JELANI BECKLES

MINISTER of National Security Stuart Young, is urging local sporting bodies and national teams to limit their overseas travels, due to the global coronavirus pandemic.

At Thursday’s post-Cabinet meeting, at Whitehall, Port of Spain, Young said, “You would have seen, globally, the cancellation of a number of (sporting) events. What I’ve asked for (is) travel to be limited to essential and emergency travel, (and that) should also be borne in mind by our sporting teams going to events.”

Young spoke just hours before TT confirmed its first case of the coronavirus.

He continued, “Any sporting bodies and TT teams that are looking to represent, please take heed of what we’ve just said. I’m certain (some events) are going to be moved towards cancellation. Do not put yourselves and the population at risk.”

The men’s football team are due to face Canada in a pair of friendly internationals on March 27 and 31, while the TT Red Force are due to face Jamaica, in Kingston, in their final Regional Four-Day Championship match from April 2-5.

Also, TT are set to compete in two Carifta Games during the Easter weekend – track and field (in Bermuda) and swimming (in Barbados).

Minister of Sport and Youth Affairs Shamfa Cudjoe, speaking with Newsday shortly before it was announced that the first coronavirus case was confirmed, said, “I am in contact with many of the chairmen or the presidents of the sporting associations and they are keeping in contact with their head bodies. For instance, I received a message from Mr Ephraim Serrette (of the National Association of Athletics Administrations) this morning and they are monitoring the Carifta Games in Bermuda.”

Cudjoe said the health of people in TT is most important, “At the end of the day the welfare of our citizens, both the athletes and the general public, (is) paramount to all of us so we have to take all precautionary measures. I think that the Government and the sporting bodies would be guided by what is taking place on the international stage and we are also keeping in contact with the international organisations...we (are) just staying abreast, getting the news and then we will make the best possible choices or the best possible decisions for our athletes and our national community.”

Asked if the Ministry of Sport and Youth Affairs would make the bold decision to stop funding teams in the upcoming months to prevent them from travelling overseas, Cudjoe said, “At this point in time that is not a decision that was made by the Ministry or by the Cabinet.

“We are not at that point, as I told you I don’t know if anything happened today. I doubt it very much, I was not at the Cabinet and I think if something had happened somebody would have called me by know, but I have not received any new information.”