Saint Lucia's six-member contingent to the II Summer Youth Olympic Games in Nanjing, China will leave for the Asian nation on Sunday evening. The island will be represented in athletics, beach volleyball, sailing and swimming at the second edition of this quadrennial global sports, education and cultural festival for teenagers, inaugurated in Singapore in 2010. Some 3800 athletes from 204 nations will compete in 28 sports from 16 to 28 August.
In athletics, Saint Lucia will be represented by Rochelle Etienne and Dius Clauzelma. The Saint Lucia national champion and Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States champion, Rochelle will be competing in women's Javelin Throw qualification on Friday 22 August. Dius will precede her, as the Dennery native will contest the men's 100m qualifying rounds one day earlier. Both athletes represented Saint Lucia at the CARIFTA Games earlier this year.
Featuring 72 teams, the beach volleyball tournament will see Saint Lucia getting into its first action at Youth Olympic Sports Park next Sunday. Skye Faucher-Mondesir and Dala Noel, the Eastern Caribbean Volleyball Association qualifiers, will extend travels that have included the FIVB World Championships at under-19 and under-21 levels. At 18, Dala is the oldest athlete on the Saint Lucia team. Though she and Skye share the same birthday, they were born two years apart.
The youngest member of the team, 15-year-old sailor Luc Chevrier, gets into his Byte CII from Monday 18 August. The young man is scheduled to compete in the qualification series that runs over the course of five days. He will be one of 30 sailors in action on Jinniu Lake, including 10 from North America and the Caribbean. Saint Lucia was awarded a place in the men's sailing competition by the International Sailing Federation's tripartite committee.
Thalia Bergasse is entered for two swimming events at the Nanjing Olympics Sports Centre Natatorium. She will take part in 100m Freestyle on Monday 18 August and 200m Backstroke one day later. A member of Sea Jays Swim Club and a recent alumnus of Leon Hess Comprehensive School, Thalia holds National Records in the 1500m Freestyle and 100m Backstroke.
Team officials for Saint Lucia include athletics coaches Titus Dafrose Elien and Yasmine Monrose, sailing coach Lisbeth Chevrier, swim coach Brian Charles and volleyball coach Keam Charlery. Monica Dudley is the head of the delegation and young sailor Fredric Sweeney will travel as Youth Ambassador.
The Youth Olympic Games, aside from their sporting function, integrate a unique Culture and Education Programme (CEP), based around five main themes: Olympism, Social Responsibility, Skills Development, Expression and Well-being and Healthy Lifestyles. Through a variety of fun, interactive activities, workshops and team-building exercises, the CEP gives athletes the opportunity to learn about the Olympic values, explore other cultures and develop the skills to become true ambassadors of their sport.
No comments:
Post a Comment