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| Ms Tamu Reid, first ever Ms Farm Queen presents plaque to Mr. Kenneth Kong |
Charlestown Nevis (April 1, 2004) Acting Premier in the Nevis Island Administration, the Hon Malcolm Guishard on Wednesday March 31, called upon the thousands of residents and visitors in attendance to accept the Judges’ decision at the 12th annual Gulf Insurance Primary Schools Championship.
The Minister was at the time delivering brief remarks at the official opening of the meet. He said, “One does not need to argue and one does not need to get into a fight over who came first or who came second, or that the judging was wrong. I am asking parents and supporters to accept the judges’ decision.”
In observing that the day was set to be perfect, Minister Guishard said, “The sun is shining bright, we have a cool gentle breeze, and a number of cruise ships in the Charlestown harbour as we stand poised to witness a keenly contested athletic competition.”
“A competition in which we have 8 primary schools on Nevis participating and 8 headmasters or headmistresses, 8 sport officers and teachers and the parents of these children would be routing for their individual teams. The children are thoroughly enjoying themselves as a mean of exerting their energies,” added Guishard.
Sponsored by Gulf Insurance Company Limited, through its local agent, A L Evelyn, the championship, dubbed “Nevis’ Mini Olympics” held a colourful march past with an array of athletes from eight primary schools being inspected by a number of officials, including Acting Premier, the Hon Malcolm Guishard, Junior Minister of Youth & Sports, the Hon Laughton Brandy, Gulf Insurance representative from Trinidad & Tobago, Mr. Kenneth Kong and the 2004 Patron, Ms Latoya Bussue.
Junior Minister of Sport, the Hon Laughton Brandy in giving the keynote address called upon the athletes to set high goals for themselves. He said, “I would wish that you would resist any negative persuasion, which could rob you of achieving your goals. This will require of you to be strong and to show the kind of determination that will keep you on the right track.”
He told the gathering that included parents, visitors, tourists and well-wishers that they must not become weary of well doing, and added, “Let your support to the children be constant on and off the field and in the classroom. Let us all work together to keep our children focused and our future bright.”
Representative of Gulf Insurance, Mr. Kenneth Kong and Mrs. Lornette Manner, Acting Principal Education Officer also gave brief remarks while Ms Tamu Reid, first ever Ms Farm Queen presented a plaque to Mr. Kong on behalf of the Nevis Amateur Athletic Association and the Ministry of Education.
Mrs. Manners thanked Gulf Insurance for their sponsorship of twelve years. She said, “On behalf of all the children of Nevis, the Department and Ministry of Education, I extend sincere thanks to you for gracing us with your presence. The children, teachers, coaches and principals have been awaiting eagerly.”
She added, “Two teams will be overall winners today, but we wish all the teams well. All the teams deserve to win because the team members have been training hard. Today, team members, is your test day, run hard, expend all your effort in your races and you will win. I trust that we have an accident free day. Enjoy the games,” Manners ended.
A minute of silence was held in honour of the late Morrell Newton, an athlete who once held primary school records. He was found dead at the Bath Springs in Charlestown on March 18, 2004. The Patron, Latoya Bussue, following the reading of the competitors and officials oath, declared the 2004 Primary School Championship officially open.
