?? |
| Minister of Sports, Stephen Lashley, with cricket legend and National Hero, Sir Gary Sobers. (FP) |
Barbados’ Strategic Plan for Sports has been completed and it will soon be approved by Cabinet.
That is the word from Minister of Sports, Stephen Lashley, who disclosed that a high-performance centre for athletic sports was included in the plan. He made the comments yesterday at a press conference at the Grantley Adams International Airport, shortly before leaving for London.
Mr. Lashley said Government was keen to work closely with countries that have, not only competitions, but the resources and facilities that could assist local athletes.
He added that Government was moving towards embracing a sporting industry. "And part of that will require [us] enacting special legislation to ensure we create the kind of incentives to attract investment in sports. That investment will not necessarily only be from within Barbados, but it will also be international. We will form alliances with all countries which we believe can help us to do that…," he stated.
During the wide-ranging media conference, the Minister further disclosed that his Ministry was in discussions with draughts champion Ronald "Suki" King.?? "Very shortly I expect to be in a position to announce a programme that Suki King will be working on. A community-structured programme designed to do a bit more than [teach] draughts. Its focus will be on mind games… Those discussions have gone very well and very shortly I expect to be announcing the initiative where we are re-engaging Suki King," he promised.
Mr. Lashley commended Mr. King for his outstanding performance in draughts, saying "he has done very, very well internationally". He suggested that his talents now needed to be placed at the disposal of young Barbadians.