TTOC Gold Foundation Walk set for January 21

Trinidad and Tobago Olympic Committee (TTOC) president Diane Henderson, TTOC immediate past-president Brian Lewis and Republic Bank Ltd managing director Nigel Baptiste will be among the participants when the TTOC Gold Foundation hosts its walk from Freeport to St James on Sunday morning.

The tenth edition of the walk will start at 2 am at St Mary’s junction in Freeport, with a shuttle service leaving Lucknow Street, St James at 1 am to take participants to the walk’s starting point. The challenging walk will see the participants covering a gruelling 26 miles on a trail that will take them along the Southern Main Road and through Central, along the Eastern Main Road and into PoS, before concluding at Harvard Cricket Club in St James.

This is the first year the walkathon will operate separately from the TT international marathon, which was pushed back to March 24, and it is also expected to include 12 female walkers - the highest ever for the event.

Lewis said the response to the walkathon has “exceeded expectations” and shows the commitment to a “bigger purpose,” which is geared towards showing generational support to the athletes who represent TT at the highest level.

“It is about the youth of TT and showing them we believe in their potential,” Lewis told Newsday. “It is about creating a pool of money capital to be invested in a particular way.”

Commencing in January 2015, the walk started with the intention of supporting TTOC’s ten Gold by 2024 Athlete and Welfare Preparation Fund.

Lewis said the Athlete and Welfare Fund was changed to the Gold Foundation in 2020 after an annual general meeting (AGM) with the TTOC executive and remains geared towards creating greater sustainability for the athletes.

“We want to provide support for athletes who aspire to win Olympic gold medals. The Foundation cannot do it alone, but it must be complemented by other efforts as well.”

T-shirts for the walkathon and tickets for a brunch which will be held at Harvard after the walk have both been priced at $125.