Trinidad and Tobago Carifta coach hails 'excellent' showing, despite dip in medal haul

Trinidad and Tobago's head coach for the 2025 Carifta Athletics Games, Wendell Williams, has heaped praises on the country's 78-member team for their showing at the April 19-21 games at the Hasely Crawford Stadium, Mucurapo, and is expecting bigger things for Carifta 2026.

TT copped 25 medals at the games, including nine gold, six silver and ten bronze medals. TT's medal count dipped under the 27 medals they bagged at Carifta 2024 in Grenada, but the contingent more than doubled their gold-medal haul as four gold medals were won at last year's edition. TT finished third in the final medal standings behind the dominant Jamaica team (78 medals) and Bahamas (37 medals).

"Because of the setbacks we had with the (lack of access) to stadia and stuff, the coaches stepped up and answered the call of preparing the athletes to come out and represent team 868 at the 2025 Carifta Games," Williams told Newsday on April 23.

A revamped Hasely Crawford Stadium track was re-opened on April 15, mere days before the start of Carifta, after several months of replacement and recertification work, which initially saw the arena closed to all public events on September 20, 2024.

A number of coaches and athletes, speaking to Newsday on condition of anonymity, had expressed frustration that they were unable to maximise home advantage by being able to train and get familiar with the track well ahead of the games.

"For me, personally, I think the (performances) were excellent. Even though we didn't get the number of medals we would have predicted, we got five more gold medals than last year and we just dropped under the 27 medals (from 2024) by two.

"We could have well surpassed that count this year. I think we could have had at least ten gold and maybe about 30 medals in total. We just have to refocus, go back to the drawing board and do what we have to do."

On the opening night of action, TT bagged three gold medals in a frenetic last session, with Oshea Cummings and Christopher Sammy winning their respective boys' and girls' under-17 1,500-metre events. Keneisha Shelbourne added gold for TT in the women's under-20 triple jump as the hosts ended day one on a high.

Sammy, who went viral after his post-race interview on day one, was golden again on the second day of the championships as he led a one-two finish for TT in the boys' under-17 3,000m, with Armani Dillon grabbing silver.

The versatility of TT's athletes was on full display, with twins Tenique and Tyrique Vincent grabbing gold in their respective girls' open heptathlon and boys' under-20 decathlon events. Omari Brown also delivered a commanding performance to land gold in the boys' under-17 octathlon. Meanwhile, Gianna Paul shrugged off the disappointment from Carifta 2024 to beat teammate Janae DeGannes to the girls' under-20 long jump in another one-two finish for the hosts, with Brion Scott delivering a stunning run in the boys' under-17 800m to seize gold.

Sprinters Dylan Woodruffe and Sole Frederick bagged individual medals to go along with 4x100m relay medals, as they landed silver in their respective boys' under-20 100m and girls' under-20 200m finals. Hurdler Durlaina Rouse was also a double-medallist at the games, copping girls' under-17 400m hurdles silver and forming part of the quartet which landed bronze in the girls' under-17 4x400m relay.

Williams resisted the temptation to single out TT's best performance at the meet.

"Everybody who went out and gave their 100 per cent were the best performers for me.

"I want to believe that most of the athletes stepped up to the plate. To me, that home advantage gave them that push, the majority of them. The younger ones who aren't accustomed, this is a learning experience for them and I think next time around I think they will do better."

While he's pleased with this year's return, Williams thinks the best is still to come from this crop of athletes once they maintain the habits they have formed thus far.

"We need to kinda go back to the drawing board and look at establishing a better standard in the development of our athletes. Carifta is a development meet, but it's a very high-level development meet," he said.

"The standard for next year's Carifta should be a little higher so that coaches will prepare their athletes to make the podium and not just to make the Carifta standard."

Williams said TT's current crop of under-17 medallists should continue to be forces in the region in the coming years and doesn't want the athletes to think about limits.

"What I can say is that everybody has their own way of developing. For me, I will always go out and try to find different things in order to make me a better version of myself."

TT Carifta Medallists:

Gold

– Oshea Cummings - girls' under-17 1,500m

– Christopher Sammy - boys' under-17 1,500m and boys' under-17 3,000m

– Keneisha Shelbourne - girls' under-20 triple jump

– Omari Brown - boys' under-17 heptathlon

– Tyrique VIncent - boys' under-20 decathlon

– Gianna Paul - girls' under-20 long jump

– Brion Scott - boys' under-17 800m

– Tenique Vincent - girls' open heptathlon

Silver

– Dylan Woodruffe - boys' under-20 100m

– Durlaina Rouse - girls' under-17 400m hurdles

– Armani Dillon - boys' under-17 3,00m

– Janae DeGannes - girls' under-20 long jump

– Hakeem Chinapoo, Kadeem Chinapoo, Trevaughn Stewart, Dylan Woodruffe - boys' under-20 4x100m

– Sole Frederick - girls' under-20 200m

Bronze

– Da Shaun Lezama - boys' under-20 400m

– Oshea Cummings - girls' under-17 3,000m

– Jenna-Marie Thomas - girls' under-20 400m hurdles

– Michal Paul - boys' under-17 long jump

– Shian Lewis - girls' under-17 800m

– Zada Charles, Eden Chee Wah, Mikayla Granderson, Xiah Tobias - girls' under-17 4x100m

– Jquan Douglas, Jayden Goodridge, Khordel Lewis, Alex Seepersad - boys' under-17 4x100m

– Sanaa Frederick, Sole Frederick, Sierra Joseph, Noemi Theodore - girls' under-20 4x100m

– Eden Chee Wah, Kyah Hyson, Shian Lewis, Durlaina Rouse - bronze in girls' under-17 4x400m

– Ben-Israel Bannister, Daeshaun Cole, Da Shaun Lezama, Makaelan Woods - boys' under-20 4x400m