Paul, Jereem, Carter eye 2022 TTOC Sportsman award

JELANI BECKLES

THE TRINIDAD and Tobago Olympic Committee (TTOC) will honour TT’s best athletes at the committee’s 28th Annual Awards Ceremony at 6 pm on Thursday. The race for the sportsman of the year award is competitive as cyclist Nicholas Paul, track and field athlete Jereem Richards and swimmer Dylan Carter all delivered in 2022.

The awards can be seen on the TTOC website www.teamtto.org, the TTOC YouTube channel and on the TTOC Facebook page.

Paul, who made his Olympic debut last year in Tokyo, had a memorable 2022.

He was TT’s stand-out performer at the Commonwealth Games held in Birmingham, England from July 28-August 8. Paul copped three medals competing at the Lee Valley VeloPark in London.

He won gold in the keirin, got silver in the sprint and took bronze in the 1K time trial. Paul won the 2021 TTOC sportsman of the year award.

Richards also starred at the Commonwealth Games winning gold in the men’s 200-metre event.

He broke his personal best and a meet record on his way to defending his men’s 200m title.

Richards, who previously had a personal best of 19.83 seconds, won the event in 19.80.

He erased the previous Commonwealth Games record of 19.97, held by Frankie Fredericks of Namibia since 1994. Richards was not far away from breaking the national record of 19.77 held by Ato Boldon since 1997. Richards won another gold when he ran the anchor leg for TT in the men’s 4x400m relay. The team included Dwight St Hillaire, Asa Guevara and Machel Cedenio.

Carter broke multiple records at the three-leg FINA Swimming World Cup 2022 which ended in November.

At the end of the three legs Carter won the award for the top men’s swimmer. Carter won three gold medals in each of the three legs of the World Cup. He won gold in the 50m backstroke, 50m butterfly and 50m freestyle events.

Less than two weeks ago, Carter took bronze in the 50m freestyle at the FINA World Short Course Swimming Championships in Melbourne, Australia. He clocked 20.72.

Cyclist Teniel Campbell continued to show her quality and is the running to cop the sportswoman of the year award.

Campbell, who made her Olympic debut in 2021, won gold at the 2022 Elite Caribbean Road Championships in Dominican Republic in October.

At the Commonwealth Games, Campbell finished sixth in the women’s road race in a field of over 50 cyclists. In the time trial, she ended seventh in a field which included over 30 athletes.

Experienced West Indies women’s cricketer Anisa Mohammed continues to perform at a high level. Mohammed delivered when the pressure was on. At the International Cricket Council Women’s World Cup in New Zealand, Mohammed grabbed the final wicket for West Indies in an upset seven-run victory over England in the preliminary stage of the tournament. West Indies were eliminated in the semi-finals.

Later in the year, Mohammed was the vice-captain of the Trinbago Knight Riders (TKR) women’s team which won the inaugural Massy Women’s Caribbean Premier League title in St Kitts. Mohammed snatched the final wicket of the match to seal the title for TKR.

TT women’s footballer Kennya Cordner impressed for her club team Fenerbache in the 2021/2022 Turkcell Women’s Football Super League in Turkey.

Cordner finished as the league’s top scorer with 34 goals in 25 matches. Cordner scored four hat-tricks and two beaver tricks in the competition.

Sprinter Michelle-Lee Ahye, who won the TTOC sportswoman of the year in 2021, did not have the most prolific year. She did not advance to the 100m finals at the 2022 World Athletics Championships and at the Commonwealth Games.

Awards will also be presented to junior athletes.