Henderson named first female president of TT Olympic Committee

EXPERIENCED SPORTS administrator Diane Henderson became the first female and, the 11th president of the Trinidad and Tobago Olympic Committee (TTOC) at the historic first virtual election held on Saturday.

The election of officers took place after the conclusion of the 75th Annual General Meeting (AGM) on Saturday morning. The audited financial statements and the annual report, both for 2021, were approved at the AGM.

Henderson won by a margin of 24 votes to ten over the other contender Rowena Williams.

The newly-elected president has contributed significantly to sports governance, athlete welfare, strategic planning and sports mediation. As Chair of Women In Sport Commission, she has been a key proponent for the continued push for Education in Sport in TT.

Henderson has a demonstrated history of working in sports management, being the first female on the executive board of the NAAA (National Association of Athletics Administration), leaving a line of female executive members who contributed to its progress and has been an integral member and very instrumental in several aspects of development at the TTOC.

She is also the current chairperson of the TT Marathon Committee where she has been responsible for the final decision-making on event coordination, developing race portals, social media upkeep, website coordination and private sector fundraising. Henderson has four decades of proven leadership at both Colfire and Angostura, where she left a legacy of health and wellness in their respective industries.

She has both an associate and a bachelor degree in Psychology from the College of Science, Technology and Applied Arts of Trinidad and Tobago (COSTATT).

Henderson, who will also serve as president of the TT Commonwealth Games Association (TTCGA) and the TT Sand and Beach Games Association (TTSBGA), said, “Thank you to the general council for entrusting me in leading the TTOC and taking on this new mantle. I am stoked and thrilled in demonstrating my leadership abilities to carry the organisation into the new world of sport, innovation and commercialism.

"It would be remiss of me not to mention my predecessor, Brian Lewis, for his unstinting dedication and commitment to the TTOC/TTCGA/TTSBGA. Nothing has gone unnoticed. Thanks also to everyone who supported me throughout my sporting and other careers leading to this occasion.”

She added, “I look forward to working with each and every one of you, especially the new executive board.”

Among her accomplishments in the world of sport are –

Elected member on the World Triathlon Multisport Committee (WTMC) January 2021-2024.

Chef de Mission on four occasions PanAm Games 2015, 2019 and 2021 Junior; Commonwealth Games Gold Coast 2018 and Assistant Chef in Glasgow 2014.

Committee Member on the TT Marathon Committee (TTMC) 2005-2008; Chairperson on the TTMC 2009-2022 achieving a 40-year milestone national event.

Committee member with the TT Road Runners Club (TTRRC) 1985-2003.

Committee member with NAAA 1990-1993.

IAAF track and field coach and technical official 1996/7 at several regional Games.

President of TT Triathlon Federation (TTTF) 1999-2000, and other roles on the executive over a span of 15 years.

Team member on the 2020 Vision Panel for High Performance, with Deryck Murray, Larry Romany and Raymond Tim Kee (deceased).

TTOC’s New Executive Board –

President: Diane Henderson

Immediate Past President: Brian Lewis

1st Vice President: Ephraim Serrette

2nd Vice President: Reyah Richardson

3rd Vice President: Rowena Williams

Secretary General: Annette Knott

Assistant Secretary General: Nadine Seemungal

Treasurer: Curtis Nero

Trustee: Dave Williams

Trustee: Racquel Moses

Member: Terry Ali

Member: Sonja Johnson

Member: Mushtaque Muhammed