Sookdeo ends Trinidad and Tobago's medal drought at CAC Karate Champs

TEAM captain Shiva Sookdeo put an end to Trinidad and Tobago's wait for a medal at the Central American and Caribbean (CAC) Karate Championship last month, when he grabbed a bronze medal at the 2024 edition of the games in Managua, Nicaragua.

Trinidad and Tobago were without a medal for over 20 years at the games, but Sookdeo's early morning sacrifices and hard work paid dividends on March 23, when he got a podium finish in the men's +84kg senior kumite division. Sookdeo was proud of the efforts of the six-member team and although he was the only person to win a medal at the games, he commended each competitor for their improvements in their respective disciplines.

The men's kumite division was won by Mexico's Pablo Palomino. Home favourite Christopher Ramirez grabbed second spot. Another Nicaraguan karateka, Melvin Villalta, shared third spot with TT's Sookdeo.

The other members of the TT team were Kerron David, Jyri Spicer, Dominic Wilkes and sisters Michelle and Roshelle Lue-Fatt. Both David and Wilkes competed in the men's kata category, while Spicer competed in the men's kumite -84kg category. Michelle competed in both the senior and under-21 female kata competitions, while her sister Roshelle featured in the -50kg kumite category, as well as the under-21 kumite category.

TT was the only English-speaking Caribbean nation to cop a medal in the senior division. Barbados and Jamaica picked up a bronze each in the junior division.

Venezuela (14 gold medals) and Mexico (11 gold medals) topped the junior category, and Colombia (eight gold medals) and Guatemala (four gold medals) came away as the most successful teams in the senior category.