01232023 NEWS AND SPORT

PROBE INTO DEATH OF MOM-OF-3

Father in tears as claims made of hospital negligence

By JADE RUSSELL jrussell@tribunemedia.net.

AN investigation has been launched into the death of Kenise Darville, a mother-of-three who died days after posting a heart wrenching video on Facebook about the alleged negligence and poor healthcare she experienced at Princess Margaret Hospital.

The video has gone viral, amassing nearly 200,000 views up to press time. Her mourning family is now demanding answers surrounding the circumstances of her death and has called for changes in the public healthcare system.

“I was familiar with the case,” he told The Tribune. “I’ve seen the posting on social media, and instructed the Princess Margaret Hospital and the Public Hospitals Authority to do an immediate investigation into the allegations. I’m certain that is already being done. And in short order, the PHA and Princess Margaret Hospital will be issuing a statement once all the factual information has been obtained.”

By JADE RUSSELL jrussell@tribunemedia.net

FORMER Prime Minister Dr Hubert Minnis yesterday urged the Davis administration to get a grip on illegal immigration, saying “we are now experiencing an immigration crisis”.

“We are now experiencing an immigration crisis just as we are experiencing a crime crisis. And Bahamians are now becoming extremely frustrated and

WARNING OF HOME INSURANCE PRICE HIKE

By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net

BAHAMIAN households and businesses were yesterday warned insurance premiums could increase “across the board” by 15-20 percent this year as underwriters pull back from covering waterfront and Family Island risks.

Brokers spoken to by Tribune Business confirmed that The Bahamas faces “a hard market” for hurricane insurance and other property and casualty-related coverage as global reinsurers adjust to the multi-billion dollar losses inflicted by Hurricane Dorian and similar storms throughout Florida and the Caribbean in recent years.

He said issues of immigration range from the unregulated shanty towns to the oversaturated number of work permits being given.

“The shanty town seems to be growing even more. We need to note the number of work permits and the number of visas that individuals are obtaining in Haiti to visit The Bahamas,” he said.

A MAN who allegedly engaged police in the Kemp Road area on Saturday was killed by officers in the incident.

Police said the incident took place around 12.30am.

Officers were on routine patrol in the area of Kemp Road and Edwards Avenue when they saw a man with a gun. The suspect fled the area on foot after seeing the officers.

Police pursued the suspect onto Hillbrook Close, where the man “engaged the police and was fatally wounded,” the Royal Bahamas Police Force said.

EMS attended the scene where he was pronounced dead.

Police said a handgun with ammunition was recovered from the deceased.

The coroner will investigate, police said.

Health and Wellness Minister Dr Michael Darville on Friday said that an investigation was underway.

SEE PAGES TWO & THREE

JERAD DARVILLE, above, in tears as he addressed the media on Friday following the death of his wife, Kenise Darville, right.

the Prime Minister must take control of this and lead. The government must present a plan as to how

they’re going to deal with the immigration problems,” Dr Minnis told The Tribune

MINNIS: WE HAVE AN IMMIGRATION CRISIS

Probe into death

from page one

Dr Darville told reporters he had seen the viral video, where the distraught mother of three lambasted PMH’s quality of healthcare.

He explained in any case of there being a possibility of alleged malpractice or mismanagement, an investigation must be done.

He continued: “Any case that there is an issue of the possibility of mismanagement, an investigation must go into that particular case to see if there’s any elements of malpractice. And

in order for us to be able to ensure that we constantly improve the delivery of quality health care, every case that has this type of flavour must be investigated fully.

“And lessons must be learned. And so this investigation will go deep into the circumstances surrounding Mrs Darville’s death and a determination will be made whether or not any protocols were missed.”

On January 11, Mrs Darville went live on Facebook, detailing her experience in the hospital. As tears streamed down her face, she said “PMH (is) doing

a whole lot of foolishness and I feel like this story just needs to get out.”

She claimed that doctors waited several days after she was admitted to inform her that she needed to make an urgent plea to friends and family for blood donations.

The mother died on January 19 after being admitted two weeks prior.

She was admitted to PMH on January 2, due to unbearable pain she suffered in her lower back. She also grappled with the emotional toll of burying her mother a few days prior.

During admission, Mrs

MAN DIES AS AIR RIFLE DISCHARGED

By PAVEL BAILEY Tribune Staff Reporter pbailey@tribunemedia.net

A MAN was shot and killed by a co-worker on Saturday who was attempting to clear a high-powered air rifle, police said.

The incident took place around 5pm at a home on Faith Avenue South.

Police said the victim along with his co-workers were at the rear of a home when one of the co-workers reportedly attempted to clear a high-powered air rifle. The weapon discharged, hitting the victim in the upper body.

EMS were called, but the man died at the scene. Police are questioning a

27-year-old man in connection with the incident.

Authorities urged the public to practice proper gun safety when operating any type of firearm to prevent future tragedies.

“Police urge persons to ensure they obtain the proper firearm licence to operate such firearms; additionally, persons are encouraged to exercise safety precautions when operating any firearm to prevent incidents of this nature from happening,” police said.

An investigation is ongoing.

• Police are also investigating a traffic death.

Shortly after noon on Saturday, a man travelling

east on Cowpen Road lost control of his moped. This resulted in him crashing into a utility pole on the northern side of the road causing the victim to suffer significant head trauma.

Transport and Housing Minister Jobeth ColebyDavis last month advised members of the public to exercise “greater” caution on the roads.

She released a statement saying her ministry is expected to launch a road safety campaign aimed at reducing the number of traffic fatalities in accordance with the United Nations Decade of Action for Road Safety 2021 to 2030.

60-YEAR-OLD MAN DIES IN POLICE CELL

A MAN died in Central Police Station yesterday while being held on a stealing charge.

According to initial reports from police, the 60-year-old was arrested by

police on Saturday for a theft investigation.

Officers found the man unresponsive around 7.30am while making routine checks of the cellblock.

EMS pronounced him

dead at the station.

His Majesty’s Coroner was notified and an investigation is underway.

An autopsy will be held to discover the exact cause of death.

THE FAMILY of Kenise Darville speaking on Friday.

Photo: Austin Fernander

KENISE DARVILLE, who died on January 19 after two weeks in Princess Margaret Hospital.

of mother-of-3

Darville said she was placed in an isolation room and doctors did bloodwork on her.

She said it was revealed that her blood platelets were at 20,000 which is considered very low, since platelets are needed for blood to clot and to prevent bleeding.

The average blood platelets count should be at 150,000 to 450,000, which highlighted the entrepreneur’s urgent need for platelets.

In the video, Mrs Darville added that she was allegedly told that blood platelets would be ordered to aid in her treatment. She claimed she was told about a week later that the blood platelets were never ordered by healthcare staff.

“They come to me today (January 11) and going to tell me so casually that ‘oh Ms Symonette (her maiden name) now your platelets count is not a 20 it’s now at a seven. Which means that you are in urgent need of platelets. And you should get some people to come out and donate blood,’” she said.

Wiping away tears, Mrs Darville explained doctors had at least eight days prior to advise her to make a plea for blood donations but instead waited until her blood count dropped even lower.

While she cried out on the video, a nurse came to her room. She explained to the nurse her grievances as she said something needs to be done.

“Sometimes people just gotta go down for a cause and this is a cause I’m ready to go down for, “ Mrs Darville said emotionally.

Although she posted the video on January 11,

it quickly began amassing more views on Thursday after her death, prompting outrage.

Her family held a press conference on Friday and said they are seeking answers and justice over her death.

Jerad Darville, her

husband, also called out for changes to be made in the healthcare system following his wife’s death. He stressed on his wife’s death bed she was asked to find blood.

“You should never have to be dying and trying to find blood,” the emotional father said. “You should

never have to be dying and have to make a decision that should I catch a 21 A or jump on Facebook because if I go on Facebook they going victimise me.”

When asked if the family planned to take legal action, Mr Darville responded : “Legal action don’t fix the

system, right. We have to fix the system for people.”

He also thanked those who donated blood to his wife after a flyer was posted that she needed medical assistance. He also urged people to continue to donate blood to aid in the public blood bank.

MINISTER: WE NEED TO REFOCUS IN HEALTH SYSTEM

By EARYEL BOWLEG Tribune Staff Reporter ebowleg@tribunemedia.net

HEALTH and Wellness

Minister Dr Michael Darville said there needs to be a refocus on the art of medicine in the health system.

Dr Darville said he believed that some physicians now have become so “disease orientated” in their treatment that they do not look at the individual holistically, and prescribe medication that affects “their ability to function in other aspects of their life”.

The minister spoke on Friday at the Senior Nurse Leaders’ Symposium. Addressing the nurses, Dr Darville spoke about the standard he had for treating patients.

“I know as a physician I always challenge myself when I practise medicine in a clinical setting, that every patient in front of me I would treat them as if it was my mother. That’s the kind of standards that I committed to when I decided to be a physician,” the Tall Pines MP said.

“So I learned the art of being patient, being committed, and the necessity to follow up not only as a clinician but to demonstrate the essential components of care. And to transform a broken soldier, a person who is internalising their illness and to create an atmosphere of wellness after treating the medical condition. I believe that that’s where we need to go.

“We need to refocus and look very carefully at the way we’re practising the

art of medicine and care and to be able to address not only sickness but also illness. You see, many of our patients who come to us with medical conditions have a clinical diagnosis but because of the challenges we face and the demand on us, we never really get the opportunity to treat all of the other factors associated with how they internalise their illness.

“That is what we call the art of healthcare and I believe somewhere along the line, we have lost him and we need to come back and get the art of healthcare to treat the entire man, the whole man and not just the clinical or medical condition in front of us.”

He also said doctors have to find new ways to ensure patients comply with medical advice, saying many people do not reveal when they have stopped taking prescribed medication.

“I practised medicine for many years. Let me tell you something, when you give a male a medication and he takes the medication, his pressure goes down, and then he is unable to function effectively with his... duties.

“So what he does is he stopped taking the medication and he feels better to perform... So he’s going to treat himself. So you could go to the clinic as much as you want and prescribe the medication, he is not going to take it. So as we begin to look at new ways and techniques to treat our patients to ensure that we improve compliance, it is not only at the nursing level, it is also for the physician as well.”

He added: “I believe that some of our physicians now have become so disease orientated in their treatment, that they don’t look at the individual holistically, and prescribe medication that affects their ability to function in other aspects of their life. As a direct result, the blood pressure is not controlled and they come back with symptoms. When the patients sit with the doctor, the doctor (say) ‘you taking the medication,’ he says yes. But he’s not taking the medication and so the doctor adds additional medication.

“So sometimes when we have people, particularly in our Family Islands who die as a result of complications of chronic non-communicable diseases, the family will come to you with a suitcase of medication, say, ‘could you use these?’ So the reality is we need to get back to the basics to ensure that our patients are compliant with the medication. Do not assume that they are taking the medication. You have to run your checks, and sometimes even have to speak to other family members to say listen, ‘do you see any medication around the house?’”

396 HAITIANS ON INTERCEPTED VESSEL

THE United States Coast Guard intercepted a vessel with 396 Haitians on board near Cay Sal Bank yesterday.

The Ministry of Health’s surveillance team has been notified and the customary screenings will be conducted, a government statement said.

Officials said in anticipation of an increase in

migrant interceptions, last month the Department of Immigration in collaboration with the Royal Bahamas Defence Force completed work on a temporary processing and detention facility in Inagua. This facility can temporarily house in excess of 800 people.

The intercepted migrants were taken to Inagua.

Additional officers and supplies will be provided by HMBS Lawrence Major which was dispatched from the RBDF Coral Harbour Base yesterday.

The Department of Immigration is working with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to ensure that the intercepted migrants are repatriated as quickly as possible.

The remarks come after the news of Kenise Darville’s death. Days before her passing, the motherof-three went live on Facebook about the alleged negligence she experienced at Princess Margaret

Hospital. Her death has stirred anger in the public and caused people to share their alleged bad experiences at the hospital. Moreover, fingers are being pointed by observers at the

apparent lack of care some PMH nurses and doctors show.

Dr Darville told reporters that he instructed the hospital and the Public Hospitals Authority to investigate the negligence allegations.

HEALTH and Wellness Minister Michael Darville.

‘Legal action don’t fix the system, right. We have to fix the system for people.’

Jerad Darville speaking on Friday

Nurses union seeks to hold new vote

By EARYEL BOWLEG

BAHAMA Nurses

Union President Amancha Williams said there were some issues during the union’s election last week as a result the group is hoping for another vote.

Nurses went to the polls on Thursday to vote for

new leadership within the union.

When contacted on Friday, Ms Williams said the process had some challenges.

Asked about the unofficial results, she said: “You can call the registrar and ask him — he has everything. So you can call him because we (are) still hoping that certain things

will be, we’ll have another election.”

The labour registrar could not speak on the record when contacted for comment.

However, Ms Williams said there were some concerns and was candid about how they felt the election was managed.

“We’ve had persons who are not nurses, which will

MINNIS: WE HAVE AN IMMIGRATION CRISIS

Bahamas more vulnerable to another health crisis.

Dr Minnis said that the government needs to take an aggressive approach to clamp down on the situation, adding there needs to be a plan put in place.

He also pointed out that an evaluation is needed to see how many work permits are being issued especially when many Bahamians are still unemployed.

“Because there are thousands of unemployed Bahamians who are complaining every day. And yes, the FNM government, we were looking at legislating. . .legislating the requirement for applying for a work permit.”

He added: “The first work permit can be applied for only from outside the country. There is a policy in place that one has to apply from outside the country, but that needs to be legislated.”

Dr Minnis argued the Prime Minister is not leading as “effectively” as he should to address the problem.

“Just like we need a crime plan we need an immigration plan,” he said.

He noted that Haiti is in a state of chaos and has an outbreak of cholera, adding as more shanty towns increase it makes The

In November, the government’s shanty town committee started surveying several irregular communities as it seeks to crack down on the growing problem, according to Works and Utilities Minister Alfred Sears.

When asked about the government’s committees and task forces, Dr Minnis questioned how many committees the government plans to have.

“Their plan is to establish committee after committee, and then review what the committee had put forth. But most importantly, the shanty towns have to be dealt with. You run the risk with the cholera outbreak in Haiti, that is very dangerous,” he stressed.

Dr Minnis added that the Free National Movement in its term had a plan to tackle the unregulated shanty towns, noting they were stopped by the courts.

On Thursday, despite some critics saying the government is not doing enough to clamp down on illegal immigration, Prime Minister Phillip “Brave” Davis insisted that his administration is addressing the problem.

“We are addressing it. We are addressing the issues

that impact (us),” he told reporters.

“This is not a new issue. This is an issue that’s been with us from pre-emancipation. If you check your historical facts, you’ll know that this issue of migration in The Bahamas as it relates to our neighbours to the north and throughout the Caribbean has been with us from pre-emancipation.”

Before Hurricane Dorian decimated them in 2019, shanty towns across Abaco had more than 1,000 homes and an estimated population of 3,500, according to government reports.

However, after the storm hit the island, the Minnis administration issued an immediate ban on the construction of any new buildings in the four major shanty towns on Abaco and later began demolition exercises of newly built structures there.

These efforts were stopped after Supreme Court Justice Cheryl GrantThompson ordered the government to halt interfering with those communities until the judicial review of the matter, which is still pending, was completed.

She also ordered that officials must get approval from the court before demolishing any further structures.

compromise the integrity of the ballot, sitting in the actual voting area. So all of that, we don’t know,” she said.

“Then we’ve had counts off, so we heard from the Family Islands that they were at a disadvantage, because we never got to vote, various islands.

“We stopped the election for an hour because the

ballot was not correct. The Bahamas Nurses Union had several meetings with the registrar in reference to that.

“Firstly, he sent a draft to us. Him, myself and the others along with other persons from the Labour Department were within the meeting and we asked him to see the ballots when they were just

produced. “We were at a disadvantage. The ballots didn’t have symbols - the ballots only had names. Most of our people only voted by grouping – wasn’t (legible) to see, it was very small. We got a number of concerns and we just didn’t appreciate how it was managed and carried out.”

UWI CELEBRATING 75TH ANNIVERSARY

West

A year later, on October 4, 1948, the campus

On

On

It

Prime Minister Philip “Brave” Davis made the official proclamation for UWI Day in The Bahamas. The Bahamas campus, led by Bridgette Cooper, commemorated UWI Day with a courtesy call on Governor General CA Smith.

JAILED FOR ATTEMPTING TO SELL COP’S BODY ARMOUR

By PAVEL BAILEY Tribune Court Reporter pbailey@tribunemedia.net

A MAN was sentenced to five months in prison on Friday after admitting to trying to sell a policeman’s body armour he said he found while housesitting.

Shervin Oliver, 22, faced Magistrate Kendra Kelly on two counts of possession of unauthorised body armour.

Around 3.35pm on January 17, police acting on information stopped Oliver in a silver coloured Honda Accord near the South Beach Shopping Centre. While conducting a search of the vehicle authorities uncovered a blue Hi-Point body armour labelled 3360 in the trunk. While under questioning the defendant told the police that he had a second body armour at

his home. There they found a black Second Chance body armour with the serial number 20581181.

In a subsequent interview, Oliver admitted to trying to sell the vests and said that he was unaware that doing so was an offence.

In court, the defendant pleaded guilty to his charges.

His attorney Bjorn Ferguson said his client is remorseful and pleaded guilty at the earliest opportunity to spare the court’s time.

In addition to citing that Oliver has cooperated with police, the attorney said that the accused found the vests in a shack while house sitting for a police officer. He said that the defendant only tried to sell the armour because he fell on hard times.

He asked the court to only impose a fine on Oliver instead of a custodial sentence and claimed that the vests not being in a secure location was a mitigating factor.

Although prosecutor Sergeant Vernon Pyfrom agreed that the vests should have been properly secured, he argued that the defendant still had to take responsibility for taking and trying to sell them.

The magistrate then told Oliver that the body armour could have been used in violent crimes if they made it onto the streets. Magistrate Kelly sentenced the defendant to five months at the Bahamas Department of Correctional Services for both counts, to be served concurrently.

Oliver has the right to appeal within seven days.

THE University of the West Indies (UWI) is celebrating its 75th anniversary as the premier tertiary institution in the Caribbean region.

January 7, 2023, UWI commemorated “UWI Day” to mark the beginning of year-long celebrations.

January 7, 1947, the governing body of the University College of the

Indies - a branch of the University of London intended to serve British colonies - assembled for its first meeting in the House of the British Council in Jamaica.

was at this meeting that a decision was taken for lands at Mona, Jamaica, to be used for establishing the first campus of the University of the West Indies.

welcomed its first class of 33 medical students.

FROM left, Fann Marie Bowe, UWI; Dr Mortimer George Moxey, UWI; Bridgette Cooper, UWI; Governor General CA Smith; Charles E Sealy II, UWI; Dr Corrine Sin Quee, UWI; Donna Smith-Wallace, UWI.

‘I feel lost without little Teneisha’

By JADE RUSSELL jrussell@tribunemedia.net

THE grieving father of the three month-old that died while being cared for by a family friend is pleading for answers surrounding his daughter’s death, adding he feels “crushed” and “lost”.

“I feel like a lot of things aren’t answered because ain’t no one reach out to me. The police haven’t reached out to me. The mom doesn’t have a sensible answer for me. It’s like I’m just here and I don’t know what happened to my child,” Tenacyous Milfort, the infant’s father, said.

Teneisha Tanya Milfort died around 11am on January 16 while she was in the care of a family friend, while her mother was reportedly at work.

Police said a 29-yearold man, a family friend, believed the baby was asleep, but after a short while noticed the baby was unresponsive.

The baby was taken to hospital where she was pronounced dead.

Injuries were observed to the face of the three-monthold baby which resulted in the 29-year-old man being arrested.

An autopsy will be performed to determine the exact cause of death, police said.

Mr Milfort said that he currently lives in Ohio for work, adding the only interaction he ever had with his baby girl was on video call.

“I feel lost right now, I feel crushed like my everything just got taken away from me,” he said.

Asked how he received the tragic news, Mr Milfort explained he was told by some friends and family members.

He said he was at a job orientation when he heard the news. The distraught father said that he moved to the United States to provide a better life for his only child but would call constantly to check on her, adding he still is searching for answers to her shocking death.

“I called every morning, any time when I had free time throughout the day. Mostly in the mornings and

before I go to bed. Once I was free I would call and spend time with her on the phone,” he said.

Holding back tears, he explained his daughter would always look so happy to see him when he would video call the baby’s mother to speak with her.

“She was always smiling, responsive, and trying to move. She would reach for the phone, she was always looking at the phone.”

Mr Milfort expressed his frustration with being left in the dark in terms of investigations surrounding his daughter’s death.

“I’m still trying to figure out what happened. Obviously someone (is) hiding something,” he said.

Asked if his family in New Providence ever offered his baby’s mother help in watching their child, he said “yes”, his father had offered.

Mr Milifort added that his family was also devastated to hear the news.

He stressed that he wants answers and justice for his daughter, noting that he just wants to know what happened.

MINISTRY WARNING AFTER LINCOLN BAIN VIDEO

THE Ministry of Foreign Affairs has advised the public that no citizen or non-Bahamian should allow themselves to be questioned and detained by someone unless that person is a law enforcement officer.

The ministry released a statement after a video of political hopeful Lincoln Bain was circulating showing him and others questioning a Haitian man about his status in the country and looking over his documents.

“There is a video circulating of a fringe activist group interfering with the free movement of a member of the public,” the ministry said. “The grouping has no lawful authority to interfere with members of the public.

“For public information, no citizen of this country or non-national should stop or surrender or allow themselves to be questioned or detained by any person, unless the person so doing has identified him or herself as a duly authorised law

enforcement officer.

“The Bahamas remains a country governed by the rule of law and the rights of all must be respected.”

The ministry advised people who may have been subjected to questions from this group to make a report at the nearest police station, the local embassy or to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

The ministry added it was circulating this advisory to all foreign embassies in The Bahamas.

TENEISHA TANYA MILFORT, who died on January 16.

LINCOLN BAIN

PICTURE OF THE DAY

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Publisher/Editor 1903-1914

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Publisher/Editor 1919-1972 Contributing Editor 1972-1991

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All quiet over Onego Traveller recovery operation

SINCE the cargo ship the Onego Traveller sank in waters off Abaco on December 29, there has been a curious absence of information from the government about salvage and remediation efforts.

At last report from the Ministry of Transport and Housing, on January 11, the vessel still has 3,119 tons of steel coils and 4,505 tons of ferix on board, along with an unspecified amount of heavy fuel.

Thankfully, we are told that the fuel is not leaking, but the Ferix has been seen to be leaving trails of substance drifting away from the vessel.

When oil spilled in Exuma, it was all hands on deck with Deputy Prime Minister Chester Cooper leading the charge. With this sinking, not so much. The Environment Minister has been quiet. There have been few updates. The most we have heard from the local MP, John Pinder, is a criticism of people who said that oil was leaking from the vessel.

On January 3, he said: “The slick on top of the water is residue from the dissolving shipment that they were carrying, which is ferix, which is non-toxic, it is more like a corrosive.”

We are not sure how comforted we should be that it is just a corrosive that is leaking out of the vessel.

Indeed, the Bahamas National Trust was also concerned about that, saying: “The primary concern around the ferix is how it will affect water quality in the short and long term. It is currently affecting the pH of the water surrounding the sunken vessel, creating highly acidic conditions. If the ferix acts as a fertiliser in the seawater, this could also lead to harmful algal blooms which negatively impact marine life and have health impacts on people exposed in and around the water. The scale and extent of such impacts will depend on the amount of the chemical ultimately released into the environment and other nutrient levels in the seawater.”

Mr Pinder also said at the time: “There are ships out there that are doing the containment. And they will be extracting the fuels off of the boat from fuel tanks, but they were capped off in time not to have an oil spill.”

A clean-up team called Resolve Marine is reportedly involved to tackle the matter.

On January 11, the ministry said: “Divers continue to inspect the sunken vessel. The booms remain in place and continue to hold. Efforts to remove

the fuel are continuing. The public is advised to stay away from the area.”

The ministry also pledged to share additional information as it became available – but there has been a shortage of information to share, it would seem.

FNM leader Michael Pintard spoke out on the issue, also referring to the oil spill in Exuma last year, saying that the government has failed to act on environmental laws to punish polluters. He said that the laws provide for fines of up to $30m in each incident – so if we do nothing it could cost us $60m as a nation.

This brought a churlish ticking-off from Attorney General Ryan Pinder, who suggested it was reckless to make comments. He said: “The leader of the opposition should be mindful not to make reckless forecasts as to what a judge of the courts of The Bahamas might award. It is not only inappropriate, but would appear to undermine the judicial function of The Bahamas. In this vein, I caution him against any further comments that could prejudice a court action.”

Mr Pinder should know better. Unless a court action has been initiated, there is no substantial risk of serious prejudice to the outcome from comments such as Mr Pintard’s. Indeed, all he is doing is pointing out what the potential fine on the books could be – which should not sway any eventual judge in the slightest.

But aside from fines, there is so much that we have not heard – when salvage vessels will be on the scene, what the plan is with regard to raising the vessel, any timetable for removing the cargo, any involvement from the vessel’s owners, and so on.

There have been positive signs –the BNT welcomed for example the deployment of measures to contain any spillage.

However, it seems strange that there should be such an absence of communication over what was being done to ensure there is no further environmental damage and over plans for how to deal with this large cargo ship sitting underwater, poking just above the sea level.

There does not need to be any mystery over this – over the clean-up and salvage operation or indeed over the state of any investigation and legal moves. So why is there?

A clear timeline for dealing with the aftermath of the sinking is the least we can expect – if everything is going according to plan, let people know.

Mitchell’s comments ‘unacceptable’ LETTERS

EDITOR, The Tribune, I AM persuaded that the Hon Minister Frederick Audley Mitchell (PLP-Fox Hill) is one of the best National Chairman which that party has ever had, with the stark exceptions of the late Andrew ‘Dud’ Maynard and the irreplaceable Hon. Bradley Roberts. They were political giants and living legends in their hey day. Brother Mitchell has some big shoes to attempt to fill.

In my opinion, Mitchell has also been an exemplary Member of Parliament. Having said the above, however, in my opinion he was dead wrong to have made the public and very snide remarks which he publicly made against Lady Pindling the other day. Those remarks attributed to him, were disrespectful and inappropriate in the extreme.

It must never be forgotten, and unless and until

Mitchell apologises for the heinous remarks that he, et al, publicly made against the late great and deeply lamented, Sir Lynden Oscar Pindling, some years ago down under the former Fig Tree at Bank Lane and on multiple Florida-based radio stations. Dread Fred and his recently departed “side kick” Terrance Bethell even went so far as to allegedly burn copies of The Bahamas Constitution. They called Sir Lynden and the PLP everything in the books and even threw their kitchen sinks at them, willy-nilly.

Sir Lynden, I understand, was instrumental in many phases of the now Chairman’s career path. Add this to the fact that when the chairman was an FNM senator, Lady Pindling was

right here with the PLP. 70 years is not a bad number, but Mitchell, if he is lucky, will emerge to an age where he would look half as good as our former First Lady in this life or the next one.

He talked above when to move off the stage. When did he judge himself to be eligible? Our beloved Prime Minister is good until 2026 then, possibly, the era of I. Chester Cooper.

Thank you, Lady Pindling, for a selfish and mature life of public service to the people of The Bahamas.

You never wavered or lost sight of the common cause. Frederick was dead wrong and should offer the full and appropriate apology or keep the half-hearted one to himself.

ORTLAND H. BODIE, Jr. Nassau, January 18, 2023

Age is but a number

at

wishes to put an age limit on nembers of 65 years

ATTORNEY

Editor,

President

President

Our

“Age

‘polite’

understand the good Minister is now 70.

Truly looking forward to retirement as a blessing not a hinderance or encumbrance or burden on anyone.

M K SAUNDERS

Nassau, January 18, 2023.

EDITOR, The Tribune.

Jeanne Thompson answered Minister Mitchell very well. Ms Thompson you may have to give knitting lesson though!

65-70 even 75 plus is young these days as long as you enjoy normal mental health.

Mandela was elected President of South Africa

75years. Winston Churchill took the helm of Britain at the beginning of WWII at the age of 73-74 and served throughout as Prime Minister.

Reagan was over 75… President Biden is also.

popular song...

is but a number” is I believe the correct and

understanding we need to adopt unless Parliament

when public servants are required to retire. I

A WOMAN wearing a face mask offers prayer at the Wong Tai Sin Temple, on Saturday, in Hong Kong, to celebrate the Lunar New Year which marks the Year of the Rabbit in the Chinese zodiac. Photo: Bertha Wang/AP

Public clinics to go cashless, says minister

By EARYEL BOWLEG Tribune Staff Reporter ebowleg@tribunemedia.net

HEALTH and Wellness Minister Dr Michael Darville announced the ministry’s plans to create a cashless system at public clinics.

“We believe by using the debit card we can ensure that revenue collection is at its maximum and, of course, there are always going to be cases where individuals do not have a debit card. We looked at the possibility (of signing) a memorandum of understanding or agreement with a company to provide these kiosks that you can access the debit card by placing the cash in and getting the debit card out and going to our counter and purchasing the services or medications,” he told reporters on Friday.

“For those individuals who may not, there will be a system in place, particularly in the initial stages once something like this is implemented for the transition phase. But most of the places you go around the world today and most of the hospitals very few people

begin to take cash and we must look at modernising our system and have a better, more robust way of handling government revenue.”

Officials are in the final stages of reviewing the digital platform necessary to do it, according to Dr Darville.

“Once we make that determination then there will be an element of training where our accounts department needs to know exactly what needs to be done. When we get to that stage, we will make an announcement to the Bahamian people and then we will go to our trial run and an implementation phase.”

While speaking at a nurses symposium at SuperClubs Breezes, the minister also mentioned the integration of National Health Insurance in the public sector as he announced a potential launch for a pilot programme.

“As we speak, we have 138, maybe close to 140,000 members who are part of NHI who are able to access primary healthcare - they are able to do it through a private sector model and

our clinics are not a part of what is going on,” he said.

“On coming to office, NHI has been mandated to ensure that we integrate our public clinics as part of the programme to ensure that individuals who have access to primary healthcare get some of that funding. So that we will be able to use that funding to keep our clinics up and going and to invest in our clinics.

“So we are about to launch a pilot programme whereby NHI now will give us the digital platform, as well as all of the components necessary to start the integration of our clinics into NHI and it’s so it would not be private sector driven. It will be private sector and public sector driven.

“So everyone in the public facility, including our nurses, get ready because we are going to integrate the accessibility for individuals who have NHI to utilise their cards in our clinics the ability to swipe the card and to be able to have resources go in a specific place into our healthcare system, public healthcare system, and not necessarily private.”

DIGITAL FUTURE PLANNED FOR THE PUBLIC SERVICE

By LYNAIRE MUNNINGS lmunnings@tribunemedia.net

THE Ministry of Public Service announced on Friday that it is aiming to revamp and digitalise the public service in an effort to improve operational efficiency.

State Public Service Minister Pia Glover-Rolle said her ministry intends to revamp the human resources sector of the service.

Mrs Glover-Rolle said following an analysis of the backlog of files within the ministry last year, officials have discovered what is necessary moving forward to prevent the recurrence.

This year, she said, the ministry is set to engage in a digital document management system as well as a human resources management information system that speaks to the digital management of human resources and its processes within the public service.

“We also spoke to growth and providing that room for growth through relocation into a new Public Service Ministry building, which

will allow us to not only enhance our office space in our physical building, but also allow us to supplement our human resources, adding more hands-on depth to do the work that’s required as a Public Service,” she said at a press conference on Friday.

In explaining the process of the digitisation, Ms Glover-Rolle said: “So digitalisation is twofold. First and foremost, it is a document management system. The Bahamas public service has over 22,000 employees which represents a paper file for every employee based on the length of time they’ve been in.

“The digitisation process speaks to scanning of our paper files into a digital document management system which speaks to ease of access of files, which speaks to shortening the time in terms of processes that need to be engaged, which also speaks to an ability for accuracy.

“In terms of processing of any files, or documents within the public service, we look forward to adding this document management

solution, because many of the long waits that we engage in the public services simply because we’re looking for actual files. If we have these files centralised and a document management solution. Then there’s easier and swifter access to files and documents.

“The second portion is our HR management information system. When we hear about promotional backlogs, confirmations, reclassifications, that have to be engaged. We now will have a system where we are able to have a digital check and balance in regard to ensuring that we keep on top of all of the needs of our employees and nobody, no public servant can fall through the proverbial cracks anymore.”

Mrs Glover-Rolle said that is the goal for her ministry to go paperless as the world is evolving. She also said the Bahamas Public Service Union and her ministry are in communication and are prepared to resume negotiations from February 6-12 on a new industrial agreement.

PRIME MINISTER VISITING ARGENTINA SUMMIT

PRIME Minister Philip “Brave” Davis is presently in Argentina attending a regional summit.

Mr Davis is representing the region at the Seventh Summit of Heads of State and Government of the Community of Latin

American and the Caribbean States (CELAC) as chairman of CARICOM.

The summit is due to focus on safety and security in the region, climate change and the crisis in Haiti.

Mr Davis is also due to meet maritime sector

representatives. He is accompanied by Housing and Transport Minister Jobeth Coleby Davis.

Deputy Prime Minister Chester Cooper will serve as Acting Prime Minister until Mr Davis returns on Thursday.

MINISTER of State for the Public Service Pia Glover-Rolle.

How we can honour Kenise and help save others

By MALCOLM STRACHAN

THE tragic story of Kenise Darville has been in the spotlight over the past few days and many are wanting to know why we can’t do better when it comes to the care we offer our citizens.

The incident has gained prominence as we were able to see the story told in Kenise’s own words – in a live broadcast on Facebook on January 11.

In that video, she said Princess Margaret Hospital had told her that they would be ordering platelets for her treatment, but then later it was said that they had not been ordered, and they asked her to organise people to donate blood instead.

At the time of writing, that video has been shared 4,800 times, with 3,400 people commenting on it.

Just over a week after that video was broadcast, on January 19, the mother of three died.

Her husband, Jerad Darville, urged people to support the cause his wife was fighting for. He told The Tribune: “Continue to support her and the cause she died fighting for, bringing awareness to issues inside the healthcare system.”

That same day, the family held a press conference in which they said they were seeking answers about what happened.

And it was announced there will indeed be an investigation.

What exactly happened from the point where Kenise made that video until that death needs to be made clear. In the video, she says she is in pain, she says her platelet count is low, and she is clearly frustrated and in distress, but it is difficult to look at that video and think this was a woman who was days from death. What could have happened under the care of Princess Margaret Hospital to take her from a point where she was in pain to where she had passed away? The family needs those answers.

But there is another point that we should ask – and it surrounds the issue of donating blood.

How often do we see shared around on Facebook or Whatsapp appeals for someone in hospital who needs blood to be donated?

A family member gets rushed to hospital and out goes the call for blood – please give to help a mother, a father, a brother, a sister, a cousin.

Occasionally in the media, you will see some press release about a blood drive that brings in a few pints for the blood bank. But it doesn’t seem to happen often

When you do go to the hospital to give blood, there’s never a queue, and the staff, while willing, seem surprised to see you.

In other countries, there are well-established organisations holding regular blood donation sessions to encourage people to regularly donate. It’s a simple process, you give blood

then have a drink of tea and a cookie afterwards, then off you go on your way.

This is a simple task that collectively we can routinely include in our lives that would make the lives of others better – or simply save a life.

We can also expand the number of people who are able to donate blood.

Those who have tattoos, for example, are often told they cannot donate –despite guidance in other countries that suggests it is fine for people to donate as long as they have not had the tattoo, or a piercing, done in the past six months.

The US goes further, requiring tattoo artists to be registered facilities to ensure basic standards are met, such as not reusing ink.

The Bahamas also has a considerable number of people living here who come from parts of Europe who find themselves unable to donate because they lived in a country which was affected by variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease (vCJD) in the past. If you don’t know that name, you might know its nickname –Mad Cow Disease.

The concern was that people who lived in areas affected by Mad Cow Disease might pass on effects in the blood.

This particularly affects people who spent time in the UK between 1980 and 1996, in France and Ireland from 1980-2001, or who received a blood transfusion in those countries any time from 1980 until today.

You can show up, willing to donate blood to help someone out, only for the hospital worker to shake their head and point to a line in the regulations and say no. However, the Food and Drug Administration in the US has now changed that guidance, saying that people who simply lived in those countries are welcome to give blood now.

There has been no announcement of our own guidance being amended to fit in accordance with the FDA advice – but it is surely something worth exploring.

It’s a simple equation – if more people are able to donate blood, there is a greater chance of there being enough blood supplies in store when someone needs it, especially for those people who might have a rarer blood type.

As well as expanding the base, we should constantly be putting efforts to give blood into the spotlight. People should be celebrated for their efforts in donating – cheered when they become a member of the gallon club and longstanding donors highlighted when they reach landmarks of 25 or 50 donations.

Every single donation can produce three different products – red blood cells, platelets and plasma. Each of those donations can help up to three patients.

And how many people need blood when they go into hospital? According to Doctors Hospital, it’s around one in ten hospitalised patients. That may be a

platelet transfusion, it may be blood.

The hospital says: “Those in need include: accident, burn, or trauma victims; cancer patients; transplant recipients; newborn babies and mothers delivering babies; surgery patients; and many more.”

As an investigation is launched into Kenise’s death, there is obviously much that we as citizens cannot do other than wait for answers. But collectively we can make a difference when it comes to donating blood.

The government can investigate lifting such limits as those on people who lived in countries affected

by vCJD in the past – but in the meantime we can show up without waiting for the urgent note sent on Whatsapp or Facebook.

If the blood had been there in the first place, people would not have to launch urgent appeals.

And for all those who watched Kenise’s video on Facebook, you would be honouring the last words she said in that broadcast.

Just before ending the video, she said: “If y’all could come out and donate, donate some blood please, it’s really saving people’s life, if you could do it.”

We can do better. We can give more. And we can do it to honour Kenise.

KENISE Darville as seen in a video posted to Facebook days before her death.

PRINCESS Margaret Hospital where Kenise spent her last days.

THE family of Kenise held a press conference seeking answers.

‘It’s a simple equation – if more people are able to donate blood, there is a greater chance of there being enough blood supplies in store when someone needs it.’

house divided

SEVERAL years ago, a palliative nurse in Australia wrote a book detailing the top five regrets of individuals on their deathbed.

In it, she revealed that there was a notable commonality among all of her patients during their last 12 weeks of life.

Despite their differences in gender, cultural background, economic status and religious beliefs, they all deeply and uniformly regretted that they hadn’t fulfilled more of their dreams, not for lack of passion but out of fear.

They wished they had the courage to express their feelings, worked less, stayed in touch with friends and allowed themselves to be happier.

No one staring at death, she might have noted, said, “I wish I had spent more time in the office.”

At the heart of their remorse lay a strong desire to spend more time with loved ones because no matter the circumstance, the love of family endures. Perhaps that’s why so many of us covet the prospect of having our own.

Within families, there is comfort in knowing that when you grow older, you will never be alone, always supported and eternally loved.

Unfortunately, not everyone approaching old age can enjoy such ideals. In fact, globally, elder neglect appears to be on the rise, particularly in the midst and after-shock of the Covid-19 pandemic.

My patient has carried the burden of his grandfather’s death for many years. He’s chosen to refer to himself as Spencer and we can all learn a lot from his story.

Spencer’s father abandoned his mother the same day he learned of her pregnancy.

Rumours over the years suggest that he may have moved to the US but Spencer never wavered in his determination to forget that he existed. Instead, he was raised by his grandfather, Steven, a strong, indominable man with an incredibly kind heart.

In moments of self-reflection, Spencer often recalls how safe he felt in his company.

A fairly tall man, weighing 415 pounds, Steven was always smiling and he had an unforgettably deep voice with a gentle spirit.

Spencer and his mother moved in with his grandfather when he was still a baby. Shortly after that his uncle fell on hard times and moved in as well.

Because of his obesity, Steven was plagued by multiple comorbidities, namely high blood pressure, high cholesterol, heart disease and Diabetes, which worsened over the years despite an extensive daily regimen of prescribed medications.

His poor diet and lack of exercise was the etiology behind his diseases and his lack of self-control made it impossible for his prognosis to improve. So, Spencer was tasked with over-seeing his care and his duties became more onerous the more his grandfather’s health deteriorated.

By the time his grandfather turned 80, it fell to Spencer to accompany him to all his doctor’s appointments, bathe and dress him, tasks made that much more difficult because of his grandfather’s weight.

He took him shopping for groceries and managed his finances at his grandfather’s request.

Steven’s son resented the fact that his father held such immutable fondness for his grandson, Spencer, rather than his only son.

Feeling that he should be his primary caretaker and in charge of his affairs, he began to accuse Spencer of stealing.

His accusations grew louder and soon spread to other members of the family. The resentment and jealousy peaked at a family dinner during a thanksgiving holiday when the mother of Steven’s son made a remark that her son was being overshadowed by a sheep in wolf’s clothing and despite, her attendance, she didn’t see the need to break bread with a depraved thief.

Steven, the only father who Spencer had ever known, said nothing to rebuke her claims, counter or in the very least challenge her statement. That hurt him more than he can put into words even to this day.

He broke down sharing the story, his eyes reddening, filling with tears after all these years, for the first time discussing it out loud.

He told me how he moved out of the family home the same day, never thinking that would be the last time that he’d see his grandfather alive.

Shortly after Spencer moved out of the only home he’d ever known, peril struck.

A Category 3 hurricane ravaged the island, destroying his grandfather’s house. The strong persistent wind coupled with rain so forceful it landed like rocks, was too much for their Sycamore tree to withstand.

Defeated, it snapped in two and damaged the majority of the roof in its collapse. Though they managed to salvage most of their possessions, the house was deemed unlivable.

They moved into a small two-bedroom apartment in a nearby neighborhood but struggled to pay the rent.

Steven’s osteoarthritic knees gave out during prolonged weight bearing so he required assistance when ambulating even at home, which is a fact that his son never considered important during the years that his grandson Spencer was looking after him.

In fact, at over 400 lbs.,

Steven was so afraid of falling and breaking a hip, he bathed less and less frequently before stopping all together. He laid in bed most of the day. After a year, he developed a bed sore in his mid-low back region that grew larger and deeper over the ensuing weeks. In time, Steven began complaining of chills, nausea and sweating with a persistent fever.

Bed sores develop when the skin is exposed to continuous pressure, cutting off blood supply to the area. As the skin breaks down, it becomes a portal of entry for bacteria as contaminants travel deeper and deeper into the bloodstream.

Steven’s infection spread so deeply that his organs began to shut down.

The drainage from his wound hardened and crusted cementing his wound to the bedsheets.

Moving him caused the area to bleed so the sheet, now embedded in his flesh, had to be cut around the wound to free him. He was then rushed to the hospital when his breathing became laborious and the pain so overwhelming that he begged for death.

On close examination, Steven’s wound had become nearly half the size of his back. The base was yellow with an alarming peri-wound erythema that streaked far beyond the wound edge, to the center of his posterior neck. The entire back was hot to touch. With light palpation of the area, a shocking amount of pus and a parliament of crawling, flesh-eating maggots was expressed.

The accompanying odor was so foul that it instantly burned your nostrils. The cultures taken of Steven’s wound while in hospital revealed that it was infected by his own feces and urine elucidating the alarming extent of his abandon.

The following day, at the age of 85, he was dead.

Spencer wasn’t notified of his grandfather’s death until 24 hours later when he was asked to help pay for the funeral. At that point. Steven’s bank account was entirely empty.

The family fought over which funeral home should bury him, the type and colour of the casket and the clothing he should wear.

Spencer lightly put his hand over his grandfather’s heart while he lay asleep in the coffin during the family’s viewing of his body. His throat became sore from forcefully choking back the tears and his heart beat so fast it hurt, which was his only reminder to breathe.

Spencer knew that things

would have been different had he stayed, but he never imagined that his absence could yield such painful consequences.

Leaving the funeral home, Spencer gave Steven’s son his savings of $1000 to put towards the funeral but he never attended because he’d already said his goodbye.

The family, now more than a decade later, has never reconciled.

It’s been said that a fool’s form of torture, which envelops many facing their final hours, is wondering

By DR KENNETH D KEMP

what they’d do differently should they have an opportunity to live the same life once more.

Spencer’s take home message is to forgive and forget.

Families drive you crazy but if at the heart of everything, there is love, then it’s something worth fighting for. Swallow your pride, he said, and simply forgive.

Spencer planned to name his own son after his grandfather but sadly the child died in utero.

The saying, once a man, twice a child, is often quoted throughout the

to one’s

Collectively, as a community, we must do more to help the older community as they navigate the loss of their independence. Those without a close family unit or the funds to hire a caretaker are particularly vulnerable and in need of a helping hand.

Hopefully, should we be fortunate enough to reach old age, we will in turn have a community that can help us during the final years of our lives, acutely content with the decisions we’ve made along the way and with no regrets to think of. Until that wistful time, we can each do our small part, even if it’s as little as helping an elderly person cross a busy street. This is The KDK Report.

island in reference

inability to efficiently take care of themselves when the years creep forward towards an old age.

‘Families drive you crazy but if at the heart of everything, there is love, then it’s something worth fighting for.’

Peru troubles highlighting unease across South America

MANY countries in South America are now in a state of troubling unease. Recent events in Peru have catapulted it to the forefront of security concerns in all its dimensions. But worry also exists about other countries which are tiptoeing through political minefields that could explode overnight.

Although the causes of these conditions of dysphoria are ascribed to hostilities between political parties in their constant battles to control power, the root of the problem lies in inequality, injustice and racial and ethnic discrimination.

The dispossessed, throughout Latin America, found a voice and a champion among left-leaning parties which demand change. The elite and the privileged, including the military, maintain their economic and social advantage through right wing political parties and alliances with powerful multinational companies from North America and Western Europe. The two sides are persistently in conflict.

These conditions have been portrayed in the poetry of Pablo Neruda, the novels of Isabelle Allende, Gabriel García Márquez, and Mario Vargas Llosa among others; and in the painstaking research and raw descriptions in the works of Marie Arana and Eduardo Galeano.

In his seminal work, Open Veins of Latin America, in one sentence, Galeano poignantly describes the structural divide in many Latin American societies –“The system has multiplied hunger and fear; wealth has become more and more concentrated, poverty more and more widespread. That is recognised by the documents of specialized international organisations in whose aseptic vocabulary our oppressed territories are ‘countries in the process of development’ and the pitiless impoverishment of the working class is ‘regressive income distribution’.”

And, inasmuch as the judgement may seem harsh, there is a sobering truth in Marie Arana’s assertion in, Silver, Stone and Sword, that “...extractive societies such as Latin America’s are built on social injustice. They are designed and maintained by a ruling class whose primary goal is to enrich themselves and perpetuate their power. They thrive when absolute privilege reigns over absolute poverty”.

None of this is to say that, over the years, progressive elements in Latin America have not succeeded in pushing for institutional change. They have been aided in the work of the United Nations Human Rights bodies, and in the efforts of the

World View

By SIR RONALD SANDERS

Inter-American Commission and Court on Human Rights. Authoritative external organisations have been hugely instrumental in pushing governments to adopt international treaties on human rights and non-discrimination.

But adherence to treaties and laws is only as good as effective implementation of their values. In this connection, not all law enforcement agencies and governments have been as dutiful as they could have been. Thus, inequality has continued and the desire by the disadvantaged to overturn it has escalated.

The role of the military has also not been neutral or respectful of their constitutional requirement to be apolitical servants of the executive branch and subordinate to their civilian commander-in-chief, the President. As social unrest escalated throughout Latin America in the decades between 1964 and 1985, military dictatorships took control in several countries including Brazil, (1964), Chile (1973), Uruguay (1973), and Argentina (1976).

It was the military that pressured Evo Morales in November 2019 to abandon his disputed Presidency in Bolivia. The same military acted heavy-handedly to subdue street protests over the controversial installation into the Presidency of the right-wing, opposition representative Jeanine Añez.

While in Argentina and Chile, the return to democratic regimes was “accompanied by transitional justice, a reckoning with the past and a recognition that the armed forces had strayed from their constitutional mission”, as one political commentator put it, the role of the military in Brazil and Peru remains questionable.

Brazil’s President Lula da Silva dismissed the country’s army chief, General Julio Cesar de Arruda, in the aftermath of the storming of several government buildings by the supporters of former President Jair Bolsonaro on January 8. Lula said he suspected collusion by “people in the armed forces”.

In Peru, where elected President, Pedro Castillo, was ousted on December 8, after an ill-advised and clumsy attempt to suspend the Congress, which was seeking to impeach him, his vice-president, Dina

Boluarte, was sworn in to replace him. He was carted off to prison at a police base that triggered protests in the rural areas and poorer neighbourhoods in the capital.

In response, police raided San Marcos University, detaining hundreds of protestors. This was part of a violent crackdown on the protestors which has left many dead or seriously injured. The UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) in Peru condemned the Peruvian administration over the violence used to curb the protests.

But the fundamental problems, driving the unrest remains ignored - a huge gap between rich and the poor, particularly the people in the South of the country who feel neglected by its institutions and, most of all, its hugely unpopular congress, which is largely viewed as a tool of the rich and powerful.

Hemispheric institutions, such as the Organization of American States (OAS), should seek a constructive role in Peru, and they must keep a watchful eye on the military and right-wing forces in Brazil which may yet turn on President Lula.

It is difficult to see what practical role the OAS can play in resolving the political issues in Peru, but, at the very least, the member states must let the Peruvian government know that further brutality against protestors will receive the strongest condemnation; and, instead, they should seek meaningful dialogue to address the deep-rooted issues in the country.

In the meantime, Caribbean governments and political parties should ensure that, in their own countries, economic inequalities must be discouraged. Dissatisfaction is fuelling the fire of unrest in Peru and other Latin American countries; it must not spread to the Caribbean.

• Responses and previous commentaries: www. sirronaldsanders.com

(The writer is Antigua and Barbuda’s Ambassador to the United States of America and the Organization of American States. He is also a Senior Fellow at the Institute of Commonwealth Studies, University of London and Massey College in the University of Toronto).

RIOT police fire tear gas at anti-government protesters in Lima, Peru, on Friday. Photo: Martin Mejia/AP

Controversial deep seabed mining could be crucial for renewables industry

BY SCOTT SHACKLEFORD Indiana University

AS companies race to expand renewable energy and the batteries to store it, finding sufficient amounts of rare earth metals to build the technology is no easy feat. That’s leading mining companies to take a closer look at a largely unexplored frontier – the deep ocean seabed.

A wealth of these metals can be found in manganese nodules that look like cobblestones scattered across wide areas of deep ocean seabed. But the fragile ecosystems deep in the oceans are little understood, and the mining codes to sustainably mine these areas are in their infancy.

A fierce debate is now playing out as a Canadian company makes plans to launch the first commercial deep sea mining operation in the Pacific Ocean.

The Metals Company completed an exploratory project in the Pacific Ocean in fall 2022. Under a treaty governing the deep sea floor, the international agency overseeing these areas could be forced to approve provisional mining there as soon as spring 2023, but several countries and companies are urging a delay until more research can be done. France and New Zealand have called for a ban on deep sea mining.

As scholars who have long focused on the economic, political and legal challenges posed by deep seabed mining, we have each studied and written on this economic frontier with concern for the regulatory and ecological challenges it poses.

A curious journey began in the summer of 1974. Sailing from Long Beach, California, a revolutionary ship funded by eccentric billionaire Howard Hughes set course for the Pacific to open a new frontier — deep seabed mining.

Widespread media coverage of the expedition helped to focus the attention of businesses and policymakers on the promise of deep seabed mining, which is notable given that the expedition was actually an elaborate cover for a CIA operation.

The real target was a Soviet ballistic missile submarine that had sunk in 1968 with all hands and what was believed to be a treasure trove of Soviet state secrets and tech onboard.

The expedition, called Project Azorian by the CIA, recovered at least part of the submarine – and it also brought up several manganese nodules from the seafloor.

Manganese nodules are valuable because they are exceptionally rich in 37 metals, including nickel, cobalt and copper, which are essential for most large batteries and several renewable energy technologies.

These nodules form over millennia as metals nucleate around shells or broken nodules. The ClarionClipperton Zone, between Mexico and Hawaii in the Pacific Ocean, where the mining test took place, has been estimated to have over 21 billion metric tons of nodules that could provide twice as much nickel and three times more cobalt than all the reserves on land.

All told, estimates place the value of this new industry at some US$30 billion annually by 2030. It could be instrumental in feeding the surging global demand for cobalt that lies at the heart of lithium-ion batteries.

Yet, as several scientists have noted, we still know more about the surface of the moon than what lies at the bottom of the deep seabed.

Less than 10% of the

deep seabed has been mapped thoroughly enough to understand even the basic features of the structure and contents of the ocean floor, let alone the life and ecosystems therein. Even the most thoroughly studied region, the Clarion-Clipperton Zone, is still best characterized by the persistent novelty of what is found there.

Between 70 percent and 90 percent of living things collected in this area have never been seen before, leaving scientists to speculate about what percentage of all living species in the region has never been seen or collected. Exploratory expeditions regularly return with images or samples of creatures that would richly animate science fiction stories, like a six-foot-long bioluminescent shark.

Also unknown is the impact that deep sea mining would have on these creatures.

An experiment in 2021 in water about three miles deep off Mexico found that seabed mining equipment created sediment plumes of up to about 6.5ft high. But the project authors stressed that they didn’t study the ecological impact. A similar earlier experiment was conducted off Peru in 1989. When scientists returned to that site in 2015, they found some species still hadn’t fully recovered.

Environmentalists have questioned whether seafloor creatures could be smothered by sediment plumes and whether the sediment in the water column could effect island communities that rely on healthy oceanic ecosystems.

The Metals Company has argued that its impact is less than terrestrial mining.

Given the lack of knowledge of the ocean, it is not currently possible to set environmental baselines for oceanic health that could be used to weigh the economic benefits against the environmental harms of seabed mining.

The economic case for deep seabed mining reflects both possibility and uncertainty.

On the positive side, it could displace some highly destructive terrestrial mining and augment the global supply of minerals used in clean energy sources such as wind turbines, photovoltaic cells and electric vehicles.

Terrestrial mining imposes significant environmental damage and costs to human health of both the miners themselves and the surrounding communities.

Additionally, mines are sometimes located in politically unstable regions. The Democratic Republic of Congo produces 60 percent of the global supply of cobalt, for example, and China owns or finances 80 percent of industrial mines in that country.

]China also accounts for 60 percent of the global supply of rare earth element production and much of its processing. Having one nation able to exert such control over a critical resource has raised concerns.

Deep seabed mining comes with significant uncertainties, however, particularly given the technology’s relatively early state.

First are the risks associated with commercializing a new technology. Until deep sea mining technology is demonstrated, discoveries cannot be listed as “reserves” in firms’ asset valuations.

Without that value defined, it can be difficult to line up the significant financing needed to build mining infrastructure, which lessens the firstmover advantage and incentivises firms to wait for someone else to take the lead.

Commodity prices are

also difficult to predict. Technology innovation can reduce or even eliminate the projected demand for a mineral. New mineral deposits on land can also boost supply: Sweden announced in January 2023 that it had just discovered the largest deposit of rare earth oxides in Europe.

In all, embarking on deep seabed mining involves sinking significant costs into new technology for uncertain returns, while posing risks to a natural environment that is likely to rise in value.

The United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, which came into force in the early 1990s, provides the basic rules for ocean resources.

It allows countries to control economic activities, including any mining, within 200 miles of their coastlines, accounting for approximately 35 percent of the ocean. Beyond national waters, countries around the world established the International Seabed Authority, or ISA, based in Jamaica, to regulate deep seabed mining.

Critically, the ISA framework calls for some of the profits derived from commercial mining to be shared with the international community.

In this way, even countries that did not have the resources to mine the deep seabed could share in its benefits, which was one reason

that the United States did not join the Convention on the Law of the Sea.

With little public attention, the ISA worked slowly for several decades to develop regulations for exploration of undersea minerals, and those rules still aren’t completed. More than a dozen companies and countries have received exploration contracts, including The Metals Company’s work under the sponsorship of the island nation of Nauru.

ISA’s work has started to draw criticism as companies have sought to initiate commercial mining.

A recent New York Times investigation of internal ISA documents suggested the agency’s leadership has

downplayed environmental concerns and shared confidential information with some of the companies that would be involved in seabed mining. The ISA hasn’t finalised environmental rules for mining.

Much of the coverage of deep seabed mining has been framed to highlight the climate benefits. But this overlooks the dangers this activity could pose for the Earth’s largest pristine ecology – the deep sea. We believe it would be wise to better understand this existing, fragile ecosystem better before rushing to mine it.

• Originally published on www.theconversation.com

MANGANESE nodules that look like cobblestones scattered across wide areas of deep ocean seabed

Buckeye joins campaign to ‘Sponsor a

BY DENISE MAYCOCK Tribune Freeport Reporter dmaycock@tribunemedia.net

BUCKEYE Bahamas Hub has committed to covering the yearly cost to care for one child at the Grand Bahama Children’s Home through the “Sponsor-aChild” initiative.

The company’s executives made a cheque presentation on Friday to GBCH Executive Director June Hutcheson, who is encouraging others to also sponsor a child.

“We are grateful that we have Buckeye Bahamas Hub to sponsor a child for a year at the GB Children’s Home,” she said. “This speaks volumes to the commitment they have had to partner with us to be able to take care of our children who are here under not so good circumstances.

“We are very happy they have seen it fit to come and show the love and support for the home; we are just eternally grateful for this opportunity and hope that it continues.”

There are 24 children residing at the home, and the initiative to sponsor a child seeks to cover the cost required to feed, provide books, clothing, etc.

“The amount of $13,000 is what we estimate it would cost for a year for a child. We are grateful they (Buckeye) can do that,” she said. “For anyone who would like to volunteer to do this, the cost is $250 for a week to sponsor a child.”

She stressed that “every little bit goes toward helping our children to thrive”.

“If anybody feels to donate their time, money, we are more than happy to have that happen,” she said.

Tom Nash, director of Buckeye Bahamas Hub, said the company is pleased to be a part of the initiative.

“We are here because we want to help continue the mission that the Children’s Home has taken on,” he said. “They support children that otherwise would have been forgotten in society. And what they do here is tremendously important.

“And we are just thrilled to be part of that mission, and we hope this is a long

relationship, not just something that ends here today. We will see what else we can do to contribute in different ways to help them provide opportunities for these children.

“I think the best thing for me, in the future, is one of these children working at Buckeye and giving back to their community and passing it forward. That is something I think would be a real win for the community and Buckeye.”

Kim Pratt, assistant manager of government relationships at Buckeye Bahamas Hub, thanked everyone at the Children’s Home for the work they are doing to provide a safe refuge for the children.

“They are not here by any fault of their own and so we know that it takes the corporate community such as Buckeye to assist where we can,” she said.

TRIO CHARGED OVER AMMUNITION

By PAVEL BAILEY Tribune Court Reporter pbailey@tribunemedia.net

A MAN and two women were granted bail in court on Friday after being accused of having 27 unfired rounds of ammunition.

Ceron Barr, 24, Shandira Coleby, 36, and Lashon Robinson, 22, all stood before Magistrate Samuel McKinney on two counts of possession of ammunition.

Barr faced two additional charges of possession of dangerous drugs with intent to supply.

It is alleged that all three accused were arrested after

they were found with 19 unfired rounds of .223 and 9 unfired rounds of 9mm ammunition on January 17.

On the same day, Barr is accused of having 2.6oz of Indian hemp and 21 grams of cocaine.

In court, the three accused pleaded not guilty to all charges against them. While it was revealed to the magistrate that Barr is already on bail on a charge of armed robbery, bail was again granted to the three accused at $5,000 bail each with one or two sureties.

Their trial is set for March 2.

HOUSEBREAKER DENIED BAIL

By PAVEL BAILEY Tribune Court Reporter pbailey@tribunemedia.net

A MAN was sent to prison on Friday in connection with a housebreaking in Eleuthera earlier this month and theft of $4,460.

Sanfred Rolle, 35, of Deep Creek, Eleuthera, appeared before Magistrate Kara Turnquest-Deveaux on charges of housebreaking and stealing.

It is alleged that on January 14 in Deep Creek, Rolle broke into the residence of Anthony Knudson and Robsander Carresquero and stole $4,400 and $60 in US cash from the two men.

In court, the accused, who pleaded not guilty to the offence, was denied bail and sent to the Bahamas Department of Correctional Services.

Rolle’s trial will start on March 27.

Ms Hutcheson said interested persons can do so online at info@gbchildrenshome.org, or they can come to the home on Jobson Avenue.

BUCKEYE Bahamas Hub presented a cheque donation for the Sponsor-a-Child initiative at the Grand Bahama Children’s Home on Friday. The executives were also given a tour of the facility. From left are Kim Pratt, assistant manager of government relations at Buckeye Bahamas Hub; June Hutcheson, executive director at the GB Children’s Home; and Tom Nash, director of operations at Buckeye Bahamas Hub.

EXECUTIVES of Buckeye Bahamas Hub touring the facility.

Short of equipment and ammo, Haiti’s police suffer deadly toll

PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti Associated Press

EVERY day when Marie Carmel Daniel’s husband put on his flak vest and walked out the door for another day of fighting Haiti’s gangs, she wondered if he would come home that night.

Friday was the day her smiling spouse of 18 years, Ricken Staniclasse, didn’t.

One of the country’s nearly 200 gangs ambushed his police unit that morning, sending gunfire echoing through the streets in an unexpected area — a mansion-lined stretch of the country’s capital, Port-au-Prince.

A gang led by Lionel Lazarre battled the police patrol under the sweltering Caribbean heat as officers desperately called for backup. But help never came, the country’s police union said.

The fighting killed three officers, hospitalised a fourth with bullet wounds and left the 44-year-old Staniclasse missing.

Daniel, meanwhile, was terrified for herself and their three children.

“My husband was fighting a lot with the gangs, and we don’t know what could happen to us,” Daniel, 43, said while curled up on her

red couch surrounded by neighbors. “I can’t sleep at the house anymore because I don’t know what could happen to us.”

The firefight was just the latest example of how Haitian gangs have grown in power and expanded in reach, leaving much of the population terrorized. While the United Nations

GUNMAN KILLS TEN NEAR LUNAR NEW YEAR FESTIVAL IN CALIFORNIA

MONTEREY PARK, California Associated Press

A GUNMAN killed ten people at a ballroom dance studio amid Lunar New Year celebrations and then may have tried — but failed — to target a second dance hall, authorities said yesterday. An urgent search was underway across the Los Angeles area for the suspect.

LA County Sheriff Robert Luna said the shooting at the Star Ballroom Dance Studio in Monterey Park left five women and five men dead and wounded another ten people. Then 20 to 30 minutes later, a man with a gun entered the Lai Lai Ballroom in nearby Alhambra.

Luna said it’s still unclear whether the events are connected.

The incident in Alhambra “may be related”, Luna said. “We’re not quite there yet, but it’s definitely on our radar screen.”

A male Asian suspect entered the Alhambra club with a gun, and people wrestled the weapon away from him before he fled, Luna said. Investigators are interested in a white cargo van that was seen in the area, he added.

The sheriff declined to say what type of gun was recovered in Alhambra. He said investigators believe the gun used in Monterey Park was not an assault rifle.

The massacre, which sent fear through Monterey Park and Alhambra’s large Asian American communities, was the nation’s fifth mass killing this month. It was also the deadliest attack since May 24, when 21 people were killed in an elementary school in Uvalde, Texas.

Monterey Park is a city of about 60,000 people on the eastern edge of Los Angeles and is composed mostly of Asian immigrants from China or first-generation Asian Americans.

The shooting happened in the heart of its downtown where red lanterns decorated the streets for the Lunar New Year festivities. A police car was parked near a large banner that proclaimed “Happy Year of the Rabbit!”

The celebration in Monterey Park is one of California’s largest and had attracted tens of thousands throughout the day.

Two days of festivities, which have been attended by as many as 100,000 people in past years, were planned. But officials cancelled yesterday’s events following the shooting.

Tony Lai, 35, of Monterey Park, was stunned when he came out for his early morning walk to learn that the noises he heard in the night were gunshots.

“I thought maybe it was fireworks. I thought maybe it had something to do with Lunar New Year,” he said.

“And we don’t even get a lot of fireworks here. It’s weird to see this. It’s really safe here. We’re right in the middle of the city, but it’s really safe.”

An Associated Press/ USA Today database on mass killings in the US shows that 2022 was one of the nation’s worst years in terms of mass killings, with 42 such attacks — the second-highest number since the creation of the tracker in 2006. The database defines a mass killing as four people killed not including the perpetrator.

The latest violence comes two months after five people were killed at a Colorado Springs nightclub.

President Joe Biden and Attorney General Merrick Garland were briefed on the situation, aides said.

The shooting occurred at Star Ballroom Dance Studio, a few blocks from city hall on Monterey Park’s main thoroughfare of Garvey Avenue, which is dotted with strip malls of small businesses whose signs are in both English and Chinese. Cantonese and Mandarin are both widely spoken, Chinese holidays are celebrated, and Chinese films are screened regularly in the city.

The business offered dance lessons from tango to rumba to the fox trot, and rented its space for events.

On Saturday, its website said it was hosting an event called “Star Night” from 8pm to 11.30pm.

Seung Won Choi, who owns the Clam House seafood barbecue restaurant across the street from where the shooting happened, told The Los Angeles Times that three people rushed into his business and told him to lock the door.

The people said to Choi that there was a shooter with a gun who had multiple rounds of ammunition on him.

estimates that 60 percent of Port-Au-Prince is controlled by the gangs, nowadays most Haitians on the street reckon that number is closer to 100 percent.

Haiti has struggled with endemic gang violence for years, but the country spiraled into lawlessness after the 2021 killing of former

President Jovenel Moïse.

Powerful gangs have taken advantage of the political chaos and discontent with the current government led by Prime Minister Ariel Henry to further consolidate their control.

The government has failed to ease the violence, forcing many to flee their

homes. News of rapes, kidnappings and ambushes on police have become the new norm.

Jolicoeur Allande Serge, director of the police unit that was attacked, said the Friday blitz in the PetionVille neighborhood was a sign of that. He noted that moving into upper class areas “benefits (the gangs’) economic interests.”

Kidnappings and ransoms as high as $1m have been a key part of the financing for such armed groups.

Meanwhile, police units struggle to keep up.

While Canada and the United States have sent armored vehicles and other supplies to Haiti, law enforcement officials say it is just a fraction of what they really need.

Tensions remained high on Saturday, and in the afternoon Serge stood among a pack of armored trucks dented with bullet strikes. Officers holding automatic weapons, their faces covered by black masks, bustled about.

A group of 50 officers was returning to the area where they fought on Friday night to try to break a gang blockade and search for the missing officer, Staniclasse.

“I lost three men ... We’re not scared. We’re frustrated because we don’t

have enough equipment to fight,” Serge said as he watched a convoy of police trucks roll out from the station. “We need ammo, helmets, armored vehicles.”

Analysts expect the bloodshed to get worse, especially after Haiti’s final ten elected officers ended their Senate terms in early January, leaving the parliament and presidency unfilled because the government has failed to hold elections.

Critics say that has turned Haiti into a “defacto dictatorship”.

Meanwhile, people like Marie Carmel Daniel feel hope drain for their country. Daniel said her husband always hoped he could help clean up his city. Together, they built a home and a life together. Their 11-year-old son dreamed of following in his father’s footsteps.

“He loved people, he loved to help people,” she said of her husband.

But two years ago, violence began to get so bad in their neighborhood that they applied for a visa to migrate to the United States, hoping to join an exodus of people leaving Haiti. They never got a reply.

“I don’t know if he’s alive or dead, but I’m worried,” she said. “If we were able to leave the country, my husband would be alive.”

NATIONAL police control security on a street in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, on Saturday. Photo: Odelyn Joseph/AP

POLICE outside the ballroom dance club in Monterey Park, California, yesterday after a mass shooting.

Photo: Jae C Hong/AP

BAARK! ANNUAL POWERADE

POTCAKEMAN TRIATHLON SET FOR MARCH 5

BAARK! - Bahamas Alliance for Animal Rights and Kindness - has announced the date for its annual Powerade Potcakeman Triathlon.

Now in its 10th year, the triathlon will take place on Sunday, March 5 at Jaws Beach starting at 7:30am.

The race features a 750m swim, 12-mile bike and 5K run. There are also two junior categories (ages 11-12 and 13-15) and two puppy categories (ages 8 and under and 9 – 10).

The triathlon is a familyfun event which has grown to become the largest race of its kind in the Bahamas with over 200 racers, attracting participants from the USA, Canada, Mexico, Panama and the UK.

BAARK! has partnered with Powerade, the title sponsor of the triathlon. The event is sanctioned by the Bahamas Triathlon Association and is a qualifier for the CARIFTA Triathlon in August.

The goal of the triathlon is to raise $30,000 to support the spay and neuter work of Baark! In 2022, Baark! completed approximately 4,500 spay and neuters; its goal is to perform between 5,000-7,000 spay and neuter surgeries annually. The five-year goal is a minimal number of unwanted dogs and cats, resulting in safer and cleaner communities.

Funds raised from the Potcakeman Triathlon will go to support the operational costs of Baark!

Baark! was founded in 2009 with the mission to carry out spay/neuter and education projects to reduce the homeless dog and cat population and end the unnecessary suffering of dogs and cats in The Bahamas.

2021 WNBA MVP Jonquel Jones excited to be in New York

FROM PAGE 20

organisation she wanted to play elsewhere this season.

The 6-foot-6 All-Star averaged 14.6 points, 8.6 rebounds and 1.2 blocks last season to help Connecticut reach the WNBA Finals for the second time in four seasons.

“Obviously we didn’t accomplish what we wanted to accomplish (in Connecticut),” Jones said.

“My goal as an athlete, I wanted to step into a new situation and a new organisation and better myself.”

The 29-year-old Jones, who is from the Bahamas, bolsters a young New York squad, led by Sabrina Ionescu and Betnijah Laney, that has lost in the opening round of the playoffs the past two years.

Jones was the No. 6 pick in the 2016 draft and was

the league’s Most Improved Player in 2017. The next season she earned the Sixth Woman of the Year award before garnering the MVP three years later.

“The sky’s the limit for her,” Liberty coach Sandy Brondello said.

“The goal is keep improving her game with the players we have here. She’s the perfect fit.”

New York isn’t done making moves. The league’s free agency begins Saturday and the Liberty are in the mix to potentially add former MVP Breanna Stewart, who is from upstate New York.

Jones played with Stewart on overseas teams and said that she’ll do whatever is asked of her to recruit free agents.

BREANNA STEWART HEADLINES WNBA FREE AGENCY LIST

By DOUG FEINBERG AP Basketball Writer

BREANNA Stewart is the biggest WNBA free agent on the market this offseason and the former MVP has a host of teams courting her, including the Seattle Storm where she’s spent her entire career.

She’s one of five former league MVPs who are unrestricted free agents this year. Candace Parker, Nneka Ogwumike, Diana Taurasi and Tina Charles all could potentially change teams in the coming weeks although it would be a surprise if Taurasi left Phoenix and Ogwumike didn’t go back to Los Angeles.

Brittney Griner, who was returned to the US last month in a prisoner swap after her 10 months in jail in Russia for drug possession charges, has said that she’ll remain in Phoenix.

Where the others go will be determined over the next few weeks. Teams can start negotiating with players on Saturday and can begin signing players on February 1.

“This year may bring us the most active free agent periods to date with what seems to be a record number of all-stars in conversations for trades or free agent signings,” ESPN analyst LaChina Robinson said. “The kind of moves we have seen in recent off-seasons can really tilt the scales dramatically when we look ahead to what teams will be top contenders for a WNBA championship.”

It’s already been a busy offseason with a handful of trades completed — none bigger than former MVP Jonquel Jones heading to New York. The Liberty are a potential destination for Stewart, who hails from upstate New York. The team had a dinner meeting with Stewart last offseason in Los Angeles. The 2018 MVP is currently playing in Turkey for Fenerbahçe this winter.

Stewart told The Associated Press while playing for the US at the World Cup in Australia last September that she’d be taking free agent meetings in Turkey.

“I’m going to be a free agent,” Stewart said. “I did last year and I’ll do it again this year. I wouldn’t be doing my job if I didn’t take those meetings and have those conversations. The decision is what’s best for myself and my family.”

Dream acquires Allisha Gray from Wings for 1st-round picks

ATLANTA (AP) —

The Atlanta Dream have acquired Olympic goldmedallist Allisha Gray in a trade that sent a pair of first-round picks to the Dallas Wings.

The deal announced Saturday gives the Wings the No. 3 overall pick in this year’s draft, along with the Dream’s firstround pick in 2025.

Gray, the WNBA rookie of the year in 2017, heads to Atlanta after a career-best season with the Wings. The 28-yearold guard averaged 13.3 points, 4.8 rebounds and 2.5 assists in 2022.

“Adding Allisha Gray is a huge step for our organisation and we are all celebrating a big win today,” Dream general manager Dan Padover said. “She is one of the

best two-way guards in the world and is in the prime of her career. The intensity in her style of play will fit perfectly here in Atlanta.”

Gray took home a gold medal at the first 3x3 competition at the Tokyo Olympics in 2021.

A graduate of Washington County High

School in Sandersville, Georgia, Gray started her college career at North Carolina, but transferred to South Carolina after two seasons.

She helped the Gamecocks win the national championship in 2017, then gave up her final season of eligibility to enter the WNBA draft. Gray was selected fourth overall by the Wings.

The Dream made its second trade of 2023, previously landing three-time all-star guard Danielle Robinson from Indiana for guard Kristy Wallace. Atlanta still has two picks in the upcoming draft: No. 8 overall in the first round, and a secondrounder at No. 15.

Dallas has the third and 11th choices in the first round.

MEN’s relay winners at last year’s triathlon.

COMPETITORS race to the water for the swimming segment of last year’s triathlon.

JONQUEL JONES has been traded to the New York Liberty.

ALLISHA GRAY

JUNIOR winners on the podium last year.

A FINISHER enjoys Powerade after the event in 2022.

DOUBLES: USA’S ROBINS TEAM TAKES TOP SPOT

THE Bahamas Interna-

tional Tennis Club’s 2023

Doubles Championships came to a close on Friday at the Nassau Lawn Tennis Club with the United States of America’s Robins team beating the USA Bluebirds 3-2 to take the top spot.

The Robins ended the week-long tournament with a perfect 4-0 win-loss record. The loss was the first for the Bluebirds, who ended up 3-1.

While Barbados finished third at 2-2, the International Team stunned the Bahamas 3-2 to clinch the fourth spot. The International team, comprising of players from different countries in the Bahamas, was 1-3 and the Bahamas was winless at 0-4.

“This has been a fantastic week of tennis played to a high standard with great camaraderie and sportsmanship,” said USA IC president Robb Bunnen. “The Bahamas have been wonderful hosts and I know all our team will want to return to The Bahamas again for any future events. We go back to the USA as

proud winners with fond memories including many renewed friendships and also with new ones created in the tennis world.”

This was the fifth biannual event that is designed around top senior players from forty International Tennis Clubs (IC) around the world.

Each inter-country match had two men’s doubles, two mixed doubles and ladies doubles in various age combinations. The event was sponsored by Winterbotham Trust.

The Bahamas, captained by Neil Mactaggart, had on its team John Antonas, former Davis Cup and top Caribbean player plus Susan Kimball the ITF World number one ranked lady in the 75+ age category last year. Kimball had been a maths teacher for many years in The Bahamas and has kept up contact with The Bahamas tennis world since leaving and returns often.

Despite these strong players The Bahamas, while winning several individual matches,

SWIATEK, GAUFF LOSE AT AUSTRALIAN OPEN, KORDA IN 1ST SLAM QUARTERFINAL

By HOWARD FENDRICH AP Tennis Writer

MELBOURNE, Australia (AP) — It all came so seemingly easy for Iga Swiatek last season — two Grand Slam trophies, eight titles overall, a 37-match winning streak, a lengthy stay at No. 1 in the rankings.

Those accomplishments made everyone else expect constant greatness from Swiatek, which she can’t do anything about. They also changed the way she approached big moments, and a 6-4, 6-4 loss to Wimbledon champion Elena Rybakina in the Australian Open’s fourth round yesterday made Swiatek wonder whether she needs to reassess her outlook.

“I felt like I took a step back in terms of how I approach these tournaments, and I maybe wanted it a little bit too hard. So I’m going to try to chill out a little bit more,” Swiatek said. “I felt the pressure, and I felt that ‘I don’t want to lose’ instead of ‘I want to win.’”

So there will not be a showdown between Swiatek and No. 7 seed Coco Gauff in the quarterfinals at Melbourne Park. Instead, it will be Rybakina taking on 2017 French Open champion Jelena Ostapenko, a 7-5, 6-3 winner against Gauff, with a semifinal berth at stake.

“I kept her under so much pressure,” Ostapenko said.

Add Swiatek’s loss to Week 1 exits by Ons Jabeur, Rafael Nadal and Casper Ruud, and this

Australian Open marks the first Grand Slam tournament in the Open era — which began in 1968 — with the top two women’s seeds and top two men’s seeds all gone before the quarterfinals.

In other women’s action yesterday, No. 3 Jessica Pegula got to the quarterfinals in Australia for the third year in a row by defeating 2021 French Open champion Barbora Krejcikova 7-5, 6-2. Pegula now plays 2012-13 Australian Open champion Victoria Azarenka, who returned to the final eight at Melbourne Park for the first time since 2016 by grabbing the last three games of a 4-6, 6-1, 6-4 victory over 87th-ranked Zhu Lin that ended at nearly 2:20am this morning.

Both the 22nd-seeded Rybakina, a 23-year-old who represents Kazakhstan, and the 17th-seeded Ostapenko, a 25-year-old from Latvia, made it this far in Melbourne for the first time.

“There was moments in the match where I was getting frustrated, because I normally can problemsolve, but today I feel like I didn’t have much answers to what she was doing,” said Gauff, an 18-year-old from Florida who was the runner-up to Swiatek at the French Open last June.

“There was balls I was hitting deep, and she was hitting them on the line and hitting them back deep, over and over again,” said Gauff, who wiped away tears during her news conference. “It’s just one of those days that just didn’t

unfortunately, did not quite get an overall team victory.

“Although losing our overall matches the team enjoyed some great competition. It was good to once again be competing with strong players, many we have known through years of tennis,” Mactaggart said.

“With most of the competitors in the 40 to 70 age groups it confirmed tennis is a game for life.”

Bahamas IC president, Kit Spencer, who as a former British tennis player, played on the International team that beat the Bahamas.

“With a wonderful week of weather there has not only been some great competitive tennis but I think we have been able to showcase The Bahamas to our visiting teams,” Spencer said. “The matches were played at the historic Nassau Lawn Tennis Club, first established in 1880. It is one of the very oldest tennis clubs in the whole Americas region and the same age as Wimbledon.”

At the final night presentation dinner, the players

were treated to a Bahamian menu with the Curb side Rockers “Rake and Scrape” duo playing the steel drum and saw.

“This gave a taste of some Bahamian culture which delighted our USA teams and had our fellow Caribbean team from Barbados joining in,” Spencer said.

He also thanked was local sponsor Winterbotham Trust for their continued support of this and other tennis events such as the recent IC Rod Laver Junior Challenge that The Bahamas also hosted.

USA Robins 3, USA Bluebirds 2:

Men’s 105+ doubles - Jeff Clark/Jeff Snow (Robins) def. Shirish Deshpande/ Steve Moehn (Bluebirds) 7-6(5), 6-2.

Women’s 105+ doubles - USA Robins def. USA Bluebirds w/o.

Men’s 125+ Bob Beverley/John Chatlak (Bluebirds) def. Robb Bunnen/Rob Castorri (Robins) 6-2, 6-4.

Mixed 105+ doubles - Steve Moehn/Shana Magruder (Bluebirds) def. Jeff Clark/Ann Clark (Robins) 3-6, 6-2, 10-7.

Mixed 120+ doublesRob Castorri/Margaret Lumia (Robins). def. Bob Beverley/Kay Beverley (Bluebirds) 6-0, 6-1.

International Team 3, Bahamas 2:

Men’s 105+ doubles - Cory Francis/Alex Murbach (INT) def. Neil Mactaggart/Livio Bisterzo (BAH) 6-1, 6-4.

Women’s 105+ doublesSarah Beukes/Sue Kimball (BAH) def. Adelgisa Hillhouse-Banks/Dale Kozicz (INT) 6-1, 6-2.

Men’s 125+ doubles - Kit Spencer/Gerry Kanuka (INT) def. John Antonas/ Alejandro Mesples (BAH) 7-5, 6-7(5), 10-7.

Mixed 105+ doublesAlex Murbach/Dale Kozicz (INT) def. Neil Mactaggart/Sarah Beukes (BAH) 6-4, 6-4.

Mixed 120+ doublesIvan Hooper/Sue Kimball (BAH) def. Cory Francis/ Adelgisa Hillhouse-Banks (INT) 6-2, 6-4.

aching lower back during a 6-1, 6-7 (7), 6-3, 6-4 loss to Roberto Bautista Agut in the third round Saturday night.

“You can’t always control the outcome. You can’t control how well you’re going to play or the result. You can control the effort that you put into it, and I gave everything that I had the last three matches. I’m very proud of that,” said Murray, a five-time finalist at Melbourne Park and the owner of three Grand Slam titles from elsewhere.

“But, yeah, I’m also disappointed.” This match ended a minute shy of 3 1/2 hours, which seemed rather short and sweet when compared to Murray’s exhausting trek that took more than 10 1/2 hours earlier in the week: He beat 13th-seeded Matteo Berrettini in a five-setter in the first round on Tuesday, then eliminated Thanasi Kokkinakis in another five-setter in the second round that began on Thursday night and concluded a little after 4am on Friday.

Murray then slept from 6am to 9am, showed up at the tournament site to get his blisters drained, and returned to his hotel for a nap, before getting on court to hit for just 15 minutes or so.

He got off to a slow start against Bautista Agut on Saturday, made a strong push to grab the second set, and faded down the stretch. When the match was over, Murray was given quite a send-off.

“Today (there) was a lot of love for Andy,” the 24thseeded Bautista Agut said afterward. “I think maybe next round, a little bit more for me.”

go my way and went her way.”

One key: Ostapenko went 3-for-3 converting her break chances, and Gauff was just 1-for-8 in such situations.

Rybakina, meanwhile, used her big serve to produce a half-dozen aces, part of an overall 24-15 edge in total winners against Swiatek.

In men’s results, 22-yearold American Sebastian Korda — whose father, Petr, won the 1998 Australian Open — reached his first Grand Slam quarterfinal by edging No. 10 Hubert Hurkacz 3-6, 6-3, 6-2, 1-6, 7-6 (10-7), unseeded Jiri Lehecka upset No. 6 Felix AugerAliassime 4-6, 6-3, 7-6 (2), 7-6 (3), and No. 18 Karen Khachanov eased past No. 31 Yoshihito Nishioka 6-0, 6-0, 7-6 (4).

Korda will meet Khachanov now, while Lehecka takes on No. 3 Stefanos Tsitsipas, who outlasted No. 15 Jannik Sinner 6-4, 6-4, 3-6, 4-6, 6-3 last night.

Lehecka was 0-4 in Grand Slam matches until this tournament, while Tsitsipas was the runner-up at the 2021 French Open and is a three-time semifinalist at Melbourne Park. Until Sunday, both Swiatek and Gauff looked fairly dominant for a week, winning every set they contested.

Swiatek dropped a total of just 15 games, Gauff just 19, through three matches.

“For sure, when you play against No. 1, I think you have really nothing to lose. I knew that I had to be aggressive from the first ball because she’s a great mover, and she defends really well,” Rybakina said. “So I was trying to just attack her from the first ball, and it really worked well.”

Her ranking of No. 25 does not properly reflect her ability or results because her championship at the All England Club in July did not come with any ranking points.

The WTA and ATP tours withheld all points at Wimbledon in 2022 after the All England Club barred players from Russia and Belarus from participating because of the invasion of Ukraine.

Rybakina — who was born in Moscow but has played for Kazakhstan since 2018, when that country offered her funding to support her tennis career — said her current standing “doesn’t bother me, because it’s been already six months,” yet also acknowledged it does provide some motivation.

Despite her status as a major champion, Rybakina has been out of the spotlight: Her first-round match

Arsenal defeats United 3-2, Haaland hat trick propels City

By STEVE DOUGLAS AP Sports Writer

ERLING Haaland can break all sorts of Premier League scoring records this season and it still might not secure Manchester City another title.

That’s because there is just no stopping Arsenal, which overcame another big obstacle in its bid for a first league title since 2004.

A few hours after Haaland scored his fourth hat trick of the season in City’s 3-0 win over Wolverhampton, Arsenal responded by beating Manchester United 3-2 thanks to a 90th-minute winner by Eddie Nketiah.

Arsenal stayed five points clear of second-place City and has a game in hand. The top two must still meet each other twice in the league so there is scope for a turnaround. It will need Arsenal to slow down and Haaland to keep on scoring.

Currently, there’s no sign of either of those things happening.

Arsenal was relentless against United after going behind to Marcus Rashford’s ninth goal since the World Cup. Goals by Nketiah and Bukayo Saka put the hosts ahead, Lisandro Martinez equalised after a weak punch clear by Arsenal goalkeeper Aaron

Ramsdale, only for Nketiah to flick home from close range for a goal that was reviewed for offside.

Remarkably, Arsenal has still only dropped seven points from a possible 57 and has just come through a tough-looking run of games against Brighton, Newcastle, Tottenham and United by taking 10 points from 12.

Still, with Haaland there is hope for City, the defending champion.

The Norway striker moved to 25 goals for his debut league campaign in England by scoring all of City’s goals against Wolves. That would be enough to win the Golden Boot in the

Premier League in any of the previous four seasons.

The record goal tally for a 38-game Premier League season is held by Liverpool’s Mohamed Salah, with 32 in 2017-18.

The most in a 42-game Premier League campaign was 34, by Alan Shearer and Andy Cole.

If Haaland stays fit, he is on course to easily surpass those records. Arsenal and City meet for the first time in the league on February 15. Before that, they play each other at City’s Etihad Stadium in the FA Cup on Friday. United and thirdplace Newcastle are both six points behind City now.

But her game is worthy of much more attention, as she displayed in knocking out Swiatek, one match after defeating 2022 Australian Open runner-up Danielle Collins.

Swiatek was not at her best, and Rybakina had a lot to do with that.

In the opening game, Swiatek led 40-love but got broken.

In the next, Swiatek held two break points at 15-40 but failed to convert either. So early on, while it ended up being 2-2, it very well could have been 4-0 in Swiatek’s favor, and she termed that sequence “a little bit disturbing.”

Rybakina wound up serving out that set at love, capping it with a 113 mph (183 kph) ace, and her dangerous backhand was quite a help, too: She produced six winners off that wing in the first set, compared with zero for Swiatek.

In the second set, Swiatek appeared to have gotten herself back on track, going up 3-0. But that surge didn’t last long, and Rybakina took six of the match’s last seven games.

These two had played six times previously, including Bautista Agut’s win at the Australian Open in 2019, a year after Murray had his first of two hip operations — and days after he tearfully acknowledged he thought he was on the verge of retirement.

After that loss to Bautista Agut, a video tribute to Murray was played in the stadium, and he himself uttered the words, “If today was my last match ...”

Not much later came Murray’s second procedure, this one to fit him with an artificial hip, and he eventually returned to the tour.

In the time since, he has wondered aloud whether the work it takes to be competitive now is worth it. After Saturday’s loss, he was asked how moments such as those this week make him feel.

“I would like to go out playing tennis like this, where I’m competing with the best players in the world in the biggest events and doing myself justice. There were maybe times, the last year or so, where I didn’t really feel like I was playing well, and I didn’t enjoy the way that I was playing,” said Murray, whose exit Saturday leaves Novak Djokovic as the lone major champion still in the men’s field.

At this Australian Open, though, he explained: “It’s more enjoyable for me when I’m playing like that, when I’m coming into a major event and really believing that I can do some damage.”

at Melbourne Park was placed on tiny Court 13 last Monday; her match against two-time Slam champ Garbiñe Muguruza at least year’s U.S. Open was on Court 4.

LEEDS

FRUSTRATED Leeds’ winless run in the league is up to six matches.

A 0-0 home draw with Brentford moved Leeds a point clear of the relegation

zone but it was another frustrating game for the home fans. They saw Willy Gnonto denied by visiting goalkeeper David Raya in the best chance.

COCO GAUFF, of the US, reacts as she plays Jelena Ostapenko of Latvia during their fourth round match at the Australian Open tennis championship yesterday. (AP Photo/Asanka Brendon Ratnayake)

MANCHESTER City’s Erling Haaland celebrates after scoring his side’s opening goal during the English Premier League soccer match between Manchester City and Wolverhampton at the Etihad Stadium in Manchester, England, yesterday. (AP Photo/ Dave Thompson)

Grace Komolafe qualifies for CARIFTA in the high jump

By BRENT STUBBS Senior Sports Reporter bstubbs@tribunemedia.net

ALTHOUGH she competed in a younger age group, Grace Komolafe emerged as the lone qualifier for the 2023 Golden Jubilee CARIFTA Games at the DTSP Wolfpack Track and Field meet at the Thomas A Robinson National Stadium on Saturday.

Komolafe, competing in the under-15 girls’ division, matched the under-17 girls high jump qualifying standard of 5-feet, 1¾-inches or 1.57 metres with her victory over her Xtreme Athletics’ team-mate Tahlia Ferguson, who did 4-4 (1.32m).

Paris Rolle of Leap of Faith was the only competitor in the under-17 girls division. She cleared 4-6 (1.37m), but it was shy of the qualifying standard.

The one-day meet, held in honour of former coach, educator and politician Neville Wisdom, saw at least one big match-up at the elite level with Indiana graduate Jyles Etienne going head-to-head with his new Leap of Faith teammate Ryan Ingraham in the men’s high jump.

Etienne, back home and preparing for his first season as a professional athlete, only cleared 6-6 ¾ (2.0m), but it was good enough to snatch the victory over Ingraham, who did 6-0 3/4 (1.85m).

Jaidyn Brown of the University of the Bahamas got third with 5-10 ¾ (1.80m).

“It was my first full approach meet for the year,” Etienne said. “It wasn’t horrible, but I’m trying to get better than that. It was alright.”

Etienne, however, said he was delighted to have Ingraham competing with him, not only in men’s, but in practice as they push each other. As the season progresses, Etienne said he expects that they both will continue to challenge each other.

Competing for the first time since he went down with an injury last March, Ingraham said he felt like he’s getting back to his competitive days and with Etienne around, he feels he will be more motivated to compete at a higher level.

“I’ve been jumping back in practice, so it’s just about getting back into the competitive frame of mind,” Ingraham said. “I like when all of the high jumpers are home and competing, especially at nationals. But Jyles will help me to push myself higher.”

The 29-year-old Ingraham said his goal is to win the Bahamas Association of Athletic Associations’ Nationals in June and eventually get a chance to compete at the World Championships in August in Budapest, Hungary.

On the other hand, Etienne, 23, said the goal is to get prepared for the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris, France.

Except for that showdown, the meet had some interesting results posted.

In the girls under-7 division, Erin Strachan of Kids Athletics emerged as the double sprint champion, taking the 100m 50m in 10.37 and the 80m in 16.17.

Munroe Riley of Xtreme Athletics got second in both in 10.93 and 16.71, while her team-mate Sta-Viah Brown was third in 10.98 and 17.01.

Leslie Munnings of Kids Athletics also got a double dose of victory in the boys under-7 sprints, taking the 50m in 10.34 and the 80m in 15.25. Valdez Godet of Hurry Murray was second in both in 11.06 and 15.36.

But while Malachi Williams of Xtreme Athletics was third in the 50m in 11.33 and fourth in the 80m in 17.46, Rashard Hanna of Beginners Track’s got third in the 8-0m in 17.01 and fourth in the 50m in 11.45.

Christovia Moss of Beginners Track also doubled up in the girls under-9 sprints, running to victory in the 50m in 8.88 and the 80m in 13.48. Claylin Johnson of Kids Athletics got second in the 50m in 9.30 and third in the 80m in 13.92. Monae Miller of Unique Athletics was second in the 80m in 13.81 and third in the 50m in 9.43.

And in the boys under-9 events, Nathan Smith of 3PA Stallions won the 50m in 8.46 and the 80m in 12.56. Daython Ingraham of Swift Athletics was second in the 50m in 8.52 and A’Ky Wilson of Kids Athletics was third in 8.78. Ingraham was also second in 12.99 and Caiden Bain of Hurry Murray was third in 13.42.

The girls under-11 division saw Tanaz Davis of Unique Athletics take the 100m in 1.05 and the 200m in 30.96. Jaelyn Munroe of DTSP Wolfpack was second in 15.30 and Kian Duncombe of St. Francis/Joseph was third in 16.07. Davis was second in the 200m 32.94, Rayven Munroe of Xtreme Athletics was third in 33.76, and Duncombe got fourth in 34.36.

The boys under-11 events were divided with George Brown of Swift Athletics winning the 100m in 14 with Jayden Jones of Unique Athletics second in 15.07 and Stafford Sweeting of Hurry Murray third in 15.19. Aiden Knowles of Xtreme Athletics won the 200m in 15.29, Ronald Simon of Beginners Track was second in 15.29 and Vincent Johnson Jr of Jumpers Inc third in 15.39.

The girls under-13 division also saw a split as Brianna Bootle of 3PA Stallions take the 200m in 26.67 -with Rocelis Moxey of Swift Athletics third in 27.99. In the 400m, Symiah Strachan of Boost Athletics won in 1:03.73, Bootle, Brianna was second in 1:07.35 and Chyanne Hepburn of Roadrunners third in 1:07.42.

In the boys under-13, Justin Shepherd of Swift Athletics won the 200m in 26.85, Ayden Russell

of Unique Athletes was second in 27.03 and Jacob Pickstock of Swift Athletics was third in 27.41. Patreco Sherman of Red-Line Athletics won the 400m in 1:07.46, Jayden Ferguson of 3PA Stallions was second in 1:10.15 and Nipsey Jones of Kids Athletics was third in 1:12.79.

Brion Ward of DTSP Wolfpack won the under-15 girls 100m in 13.25, Deryn Rodgers of Star Trackers was second in 13.35 and Keely Deveaux of the T-Bird Flyers was third in 13.40. Sarsha Wright of Team Velocity won the girls under-15 200m in 26.11, Nataya Watson, her teammate, was second in 26.88 and Ward got third in 27.15.

Jasmine Thompson of the Roadrunners won the 400m in 1:01.36 with Wright in 1:02.49 and Jade Knowles of DTSP Wolfpack third in 1:02.99. Breyteisha Kemp of Hurry Murray, who was fourth in 1:03.16, won the 1,500n in 5:50.35, Shimoi Bain of Hurry Murray was second in 6:21.40 and Rishan Belle of the Roadrunners was third in 6:28.64.

In the boys under-15 division, Terrin Beckles of Quick Step won the 100m in 12.23, Rohman Rolle of Fast Forward was second in 12.28 and Jayden Smith, also from Fast Forward, was third in 12.75. In the 200m, Beckles won again in 24.41, Rolle was second in 24.55 and Kamron Henfield of Team Velocity was third in 24.66. Henfield Kamron won the 400m in 55.99 over Tyreik Colebrook of Swift Athletics (56.47) and Rion Larrimore of Hurry Murray (57.80).

Winning the under-17 girls 100m was Shekinah Johnson of Spirit of Excellence in 12.75 with Khylee Wallace of Quick Step second (13.11) and Iesha Hanna of Roadrunners third (13.17).

In the 200m, Jamiah Nabbie of Fast Forward won in 25.26, Shayann Demeritte of Swift Athletics second (25.99) and Johnson third (26.57).

Tamia Taylor of Roadrunners won the 400m in 58.56, Brey’Elle Cooper of DTSP Wolfpack second (1:01.83) and Evanice Sands of DTSP Wolfpack third (1:04.29). And in the 800m, Yulianis Akompi of Quick

Step won in 2:29.46, Jayda Rahming of Core Athletics second (2:32.53) and Alexis Roberts of Team Roberts third (2:35.66).

On the field, Zion Carey of Star Trackers won the long jump with 4.67m; Zoe Adderley of Fast Forward took the triple jump with 11.04m; Terrell McCoy of Triple Threat tossed the shot put 12.17m and Chea’Lisa Knowles of Air Assaults hurled the javelin 15.00m.

Andrew Brown, competing nonattached, clocked 11.01 to take the under-17 boys 10m; Davon Davis of T Bird Flyers was second in 12.49 and Trent Ford of Roadrunners was third in 11.20. Brown also captured the 200m (22.91) with Everette Fraser of Fast Forward second (23.38) and Rolinny Labranche of Swift Athletics third (23.41).

In the 400m, Bryson Rolle of T Bird Flyers won in 52.89, Zion Davis of Fast Forward second (52.97) and Jayden Cooper of Speed Capacity third (53.70). Winning the 800m was Zion Davis of Fast Forward (2:07.62), Christopher Minors of T Bird Flyers second (2:14.00) and Rolle Bryson third (2:14.59). Ross Martin of Hurry Murray won the 1,500m (4:47.36), Minors was second (4:55.36) and Gabriel Johnson of Hurry Murray third (5:20.90).

J’Lin Roberts of Jumpers Inc cleared 5.38m in the long jump; Cooper took the triple jump (12.11m); Jaylen Scott of Blue Chip won the shot put (13.82m); Larouche Morley of Triple Threat took the discus (31.34m) and Ashton Morley of Air Assaults threw the javelin 38.41m. Dana Rolle of Roadrunners took the under-20 boys 110 metre hurdles in 15.46 with Jon-Mark Smikle of Quick steps second (15.50) with his brother and teammate Jehiel Smikle of Quick Step third (16.19).

In the women’s under-20/ open division, triple jumper Tamara Myers of Leap of Faith showed her versatility and speed by winning the 100m in 12.6; Melvinique Newbold of T Bird Flyers won the 200m (25.60) and the 400m (1:00.20); Jasmine Mackey of 3PA Stallions took the 800m (2:31.16)

Kaiya Cambridge of Power Athletics won the 100m hurdles (16.02).

In field events, Lanique Thompson of Jumpers Inc took the long jump (5.19m); Koi Adderley of Fast Forward won the high jump (1.55m); Apryl Adderley of PVS Sports took the triple jump (11.31m); Annae Mackey of Blue Chip took the shot put (12.46m); Cailyn Johnson of Triple Threat took the discus (37.95m) and Kamera Strachan of Air Assaults won the javelin (39.76m).

The under-20/open men’s 100m was won by Samalie Farrington of Swift Athletics (10.68) with Jeremiah Adderley of DTSP Wolfpack second (10.76) and Taryll Thompson of Fast Forward third (10.92).

Adderley came back and won the 200m (21.89) with Thompson second (22.36) and Matthew Chandler of Fast Forward third (22.56).

In the 400m, Philip Gray of DTSP Wolfpack won (48.90), Quinton Ellis of Phoenix Track was second (49.33) and Berkley Munnings of Fast Forward third (50.54). Levinne Joseph of University of the Bahamas won (1:56.16) with Kenzie Knowles of Swift Athletics second (1:57.66) and Raywind Winder of Hurry Murray was third (2:01.94).

Winning the 1,500 metres was Christopher Saintus of Swift Athletics (4:20.30) with Paulindo Boyer of Swift Athletics second (4:20.86) and Jean Dorelien of T Bird Flyers third (4:53.11). Kenold Jen of the University of the Bahamas won the 3,000m (10:40.74) with Hurry Murray’s Nathan Johnson second (10:46.09) and Ross Martin third (11:00.69).

And also in field events, Grand Bahamian Dimarco Oliver of Tabernacle Baptist Academy won the long jump (6.44m) with Corey Wright of Bahamas Speed Dynamics second (6.26m) and Jahlandon Wilson of Noble Preparator third (86m). Rollie Hanna of Jumpers Inc took the triple jump (13.94m) and Robert Deal Jr of Air Assaults won the javelin (45.70m) with Lavardo Deveaux of Bahamas Speed Dynamics second (45.46m) and A’Jai Culmer of Air Assaults third (29.36).

‘BUDDY’ SCORES 22 POINTS IN LOSS TO SUNS

plays from Wainright during the final possessions iced it. The muscular 6-foot-5, 235pound forward nailed a corner 3 with 1:10 left to push the Suns up by 107-101 and then added a nifty assist on a pass to Jock Landale for an easy basket — two stellar possessions that kept that feisty Pacers fighting from behind.

Indiana had a chance to tie on its final possession, but Buddy Hield missed a rushed 3-pointer with two seconds left. The Pacers lost despite a triple-double from T.J. McConnell, who had 18 points, 12 assists and 10 rebounds.

Phoenix and its ragtag roster took an 87-83 lead into the fourth quarter. The Suns were once again missing a big chunk of their staring lineup, including the AllStar backcourt of Chris Paul and Devin Booker. Starting centre Deandre Ayton was out with a non-COVID-19 illness.

But the Suns are still playing hard and treading water in the Western Conference.

“We’re holding it down and just building trust,” Wainright said of playing without the team’s stars. “They’re trusting us, so when they get back, we’ll trust them.”

Both the Suns and Pacers struggled to score in the fourth quarter.

The Suns pushed to a 102-94 lead with 2:49 left but the Pacers scored four points on one possession when Phoenix’s Saben Lee was called for a flagrant foul after elbowing Hield in the face. Hield hit both free throws and Bennedict Mathurin made a layup after the Pacers retained possession because of the flagrant foul.

The Pacers eventually pulled to 104-101 but Wainright’s corner 3 swung the momentum back in the Suns’ favour.

The Suns won despite shooting 41.8% from the field. The Pacers shot just 37.5%.

Indiana was without its leading scorer Tyrese Haliburton, who missed his sixth straight game. The Pacers have lost seven straight.

“Getting the next win is going to be challenging,” Pacers coach Rick Carlisle said. “That is how it is in his league.”

THE TMT Giants handed the Caro Contractors Shockers another loss in the men’s division one play in the New Providence Basketball Association at the AF Adderley Gymnasium on Saturday night.

In their featured game, the Giants won 67-61 over the Shockers, while in the opener, the Rebels pounded the Cyber Tech 77-55.

On Friday night, the Leno Regulators knocked off the Rebels 84-72 in their division one feature contest. In the division II opener, the Produce Express nipped Your Essential Store Giants 72-71.

• Here’s a summary of the games played: Giants 67, Shockers 61: Donovan Dean scored 15 points with 15 points with a pair of rebounds and steals to lead TMT to victory. Ujamaa Johnson had 13 points, six rebounds, five assists and three steals with a block shot.

The Giants also got 10 points, three rebounds, as many assists and a pair of steals from D’Angelo Mackey; nine points, three rebounds, three assists and two steals from Daniel Hall and eight points, four rebounds nd a pair of assists and steals from Rashad Sturrup. Randy Miller added six points and five rebounds.

In a losing effort for Caro Contractors, William Rigby had a game high 19 points. 15 rebounds, four steals, two blocks and an assist.

Dominique Fernander had 10 points and 11 rebounds; Spurgeon Johnson also had 10 points with three rebounds and two assists and Rameno King chipped in with nine points, nine rebounds, a pair of steals and blocks and an assist.

Rebels 77, Cyber Tech 55: Shavanno Johnson led the Express with 16 points, 14 rebounds and three blocks. Four

other players matched their double dugite scoring to help out.

Kriston Munroe had 13 points, 23 rebounds, three rebounds, two assists and a block; Marcian Pickstock had 13 points, five rebounds, three assists, three steals and a block; Rasheed Brown had 13 points. Five rebounds, three steals and two assists and Giano Fowler had 13 points and four rebounds.

Tyrese Poitier had a game high 17 points, seven rebounds, four assists and three steals; Warren Miller had 14 points and two assists; Steve Shurton had seven points and six rebounds and Devon Bonaby Jr added six points, six rebounds and three steals.

Regulators 84, Rebels 72: Alexander Rolle poured in a game high 30 points with 15 rebounds and four assists to lead Leno to victory on Friday night.

Zachary Pennerman added 19 points with six rebounds and a pair of assists and steals; Darius Adams had 12 points, five rebounds and two assists and Alex Joseph helped out with 11 points nd three rebounds.

For the Rebels, Johnley Noel had 18 points and 11 rebounds; Davon Adderley had 13 points, four rebounds, three assists and two blocks; Deniro Kemp had nine points and a pair of rebounds and steals; Jorann Adderley had eight points, seven rebounds, four assists and two steals and Lance Posey also had eight points, seven rebounds and a pair of assists and blocks.

Produce Express 72, YES Giants 71: With sbout 18 seconds left, Rumalo Ellis canned a pair of free throws to push the Express ahead 72-67 to hold onto the win. He finished with six points, three rebounds and a pair of assists and steals.

Maleak Johnson had 15 points, eight rebounds and six steals; Tyrell Butler had 12 points, seven rebounds, three rebounds and a pair of assists and steals; Randy Blanfort had 11 points and eight rebounds; Anthon Williams had eight points, 10 rebounds and three assists; Jefferson Oliver had eight points, five rebounds and four steals and Dion Brown had six points, eight rebounds, three blocks and two steals.

In a losing effort, Matthew Saunders had a game high 16 points, six rebounds and three assists.

Brandon Strachan had 11 points, 12 rebounds, five assists and three steals; Simar Rolle had 11 points as well with nine rebounds and two steals; Kirklyn Farrington had 10 points and a pair of rebounds, assists and steals; Edward Williams had seven points,, six rebounds and two steals and Cormardo Seymour

added six points and nine rebounds.

Monday’s schedule

7pm - BIBT Great Whites vs RC Liquors Eagles (DII) 8pm - Commonwealth Giants vs Leno Regulators (D1)

Wednesday 7pm - Mekaddish Millionaires vs Discount Distributors Rockets (DII). 8pm - Zulu Media Marketing vs Leno Regulators (D1)

Friday 7pm - Rebels vs BIBT Great Whites (DII)

8pm - Cao Contractors Shockers vs Tucker Boys (D1)

Saturday 7pm - RC Liquors Eagles vs Produce Express (DII) 8pm - Discount Distributors Liquors Rockets vs TMT Giants (D1)

GEE Sene (190) and Bryson Rolle (500) compete in the boys under-17 800 metres. Photo: Patrick Hanna/BIS

49ers beat Cowboys 19-12 to advance to NFC title game

By JOSH DUBOW AP Pro Football Writer

SANTA CLARA, Calif.

(AP) — Christian McCaffrey scored on a go-ahead 2-yard run in the fourth quarter and San Francisco’s defence did the rest, sending the 49ers to their second straight NFC title game with a 19-12 victory over the Dallas Cowboys yesterday.

The 49ers (15-4) used back-to-back long scoring drives in the second half to wear down the Cowboys (13-6) and win their 12th straight game.

San Francisco advanced to play the Eagles in the NFC title game next Sunday in Philadelphia after losing in that round to the Rams a year ago.

The Cowboys lost for the record seventh straight time in the divisional round and have failed to make it to the NFC title game since

winning their fifth Super Bowl title following the 1995 season.

Dak Prescott threw two interceptions and Brett Maher missed his fifth extra point of the postseason when his attempt was blocked. He later made two field goals.

The Cowboys had a shot when they took over at their own 18 with 2:59 remaining, trailing 19-12 after Robbie Gould’s fourth field goal of the game capped a nearly eight-minute drive.

But Prescott threw two straight incompletions and was sacked on third down.

Coach Mike McCarthy opted to punt on fourthand-10 with all three timeouts left.

Rookie Brock Purdy started the next drive with a 16-yard completion to George Kittle and San Francisco didn’t give the ball back to Dallas until there were 45 seconds left

at the 6. Dallas never got close from there.

Purdy, the last pick in the draft last April, improved to 7-0 as a starter since replacing an injured Jimmy Garoppolo early in Week 13.

He went 18 for 28 for 215 yards with no turnovers against the Cowboys, joining Joe Flacco (2008) and Mark Sanchez (2009) as the only rookie QBs to win two playoff starts.

The 49ers took the lead on the first play of the fourth quarter when McCaffrey capped a 91-yard drive with a 2-yard run.

The drive featured a juggling 30-yard catch by Kittle and a pair of defensive holds against Dallas — including one on Donovan Wilson near the goal line that negated a thirddown sack.

Maher made his second field goal of the game when

he converted from 43 yards out to cut San Francisco’s lead to 16-12.

The NFL’s top two scoring teams over the past 13 weeks had trouble getting going as the defences led by All-Pros Nick Bosa of San Francisco and Micah Parsons of Dallas controlled the play.

The Niners turned two interceptions in the first half by Prescott into field goals by Robbie Gould and led 9-6 at the half.

The Cowboys scored the only TD of the first half with Prescott connecting with tight end Dalton Schultz for the third time this postseason.

But Maher’s low extrapoint attempt was blocked by Samson Ebukam.

Maher got some redemption when he made a 25-yard field goal that tied the game at 9 early in the third quarter after Ray-Ray McCloud fumbled a punt

BENGALS RETURN TO AFC CHAMPIONSHIP AFTER 27-10 ROUT OF BILLS

By JOHN WAWROW AP Sports Writer

ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. (AP) — Joe Burrow threw two touchdown passes, Cincinnati’s defence swarmed Josh Allen on a snow-slicked field and the Bengals advanced to their second straight AFC championship game with a 27-10 win over the Buffalo Bills yesterday.

Damar Hamlin’s inspirational presence while watching the game from an end-zone suite was not enough to spark the Bills in a rematch of a regularseason game that was cancelled on January 2 when the Bills safety went into cardiac arrest and had to be resuscitated on the field in Cincinnati.

Instead, it was “Joe Cool” showing poise while playing in a persistent snowfall.

Burrow completed his first nine passes for 105 yards in leading Cincinnati to a 14-0 lead after its first two possessions. Ja’Marr Chase opened the scoring with a 28-yard TD catch 3:20 into the game, followed by Burrow’s 15-yard

TD throw to Hayden Hurst eight minutes later. Joe Mixon scored on a 1-yard run, and Evan McPherson made field goals from 20 and 28 yards in a game the Bengals never trailed.

Cincinnati advanced to consecutive AFC championship games for the first time in franchise history, and will again travel to play Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas City Chiefs. The Bengals beat the Chiefs 27-24 to advance to last year’s Super Bowl, which they lost to the Los Angeles Rams. “It’s going to be a fun one,” said Burrow, who went 23 of 36 for 242 yards. “Two of the top guys in the league, two of the top teams in the league, great defences, great overall teams, great coaches.”

Cincinnati has won the past three meetings against Kansas City, including a 27-24 victory last month.

The Chiefs are making their fifth straight appearance in the AFC championship game following a 27-20 win over Jacksonville on Saturday.

The Bills’ playoff run ended in the divisional

round for a second straight season, including a 42-36 overtime loss to Kansas City last year.

Had Buffalo defeated Cincinnati, the AFC championship would have been held at Atlanta next weekend because the Bills (13-3) finished the season a halfgame behind the Chiefs (14-3) after their game against Cincinnati was cancelled.

“Better send those refunds,” Burrow said, referring to Bills and Chiefs fans.

The Bengals mixed in their running attack to

keep the Bills off balance in a first half in which Cincinnati outgained Buffalo in total yards by a margin of 274-135, and 412-325 overall. Mixon’s 105 yards rushing alone were 1 short of how many the Bengals combined in their past two games, both against Baltimore.

“Domination from start to finish,” Burrow added. “That’s what we expected. Job’s not finished.”

The Bengals held one of the NFL’s top offences to season-low 10 points. And the unit got a chance to celebrate by making snow

angels in the end zone after Cam Taylor-Britt intercepted Allen’s attempt at the goal line to essentially end the game with 62 seconds remaining.

Allen finished 25 of 42 for 265 yards.

“They came out, they played hard,” Allen said. “We just didn’t have it today.”

It was a dud of an outing for a Bills team that opened the season with Super Bowl aspirations, and eventually ran out of emotional and physical gas.

Aside from the stunning sight of Hamlin’s collapse, the Bills had their schedule twice disrupted by severe winter storms.

Injuries also played an issue. The Bills’ pass rush, missing Von Miller since he sustained a season-ending knee injury in November, generated very little pressure against a Bengals offensive line missing three starters due to injuries.

“We were expecting their best punch and they came out and punched us,” Allen said.

Hamlin was whisked into the stadium in a security

vehicle, and led directly into the Bills’ locker room about an hour before kickoff.

He was later joined by his mother, Nina, and younger brother, Damir.

He watched the game from a suite in one end zone and was pictured on the videoboard at the 2-minute warning in the first half, with Cincinnati facing second-and-goal at Buffalo’s 5.

Hamlin raised his arms in his suite to a roar of cheers, before making a heart sign with his hands.

The Bills defence limited the Bengals to a field goal, and trailed 17-7 at the half.

STREAKS

The Bengals extended their franchise-best streak to 10 straight wins. They haven’t lost since a 32-13 defeat at Cleveland on Halloween.

The Bills dropped to 13-2 when hosting an NFL playoff game. And they were 4-0 under coach Sean McDermott.

UP NEXT Bengals: Travel to Kansas City to face the Chiefs next Sunday in a rematch of last year’s AFC championship game.

hope that he can meet up with the right people, who can help him advance his journey and get to connect with the different people from around the world with the different cultures that he’s never experienced before.

“Ultimately, I want to be the same person that I am and hopefully I can inspire more young people to do the same thing that I am doing,” he said.

“This is something that is achievable if you work hard.

“It wasn’t enough for me, but if you put your trust in God and trust the process that you have to go through, anything is possible.”

Delancey’s signing came a day before Andru Arthur signed his name on the dotted line for his contract with the St Louis Cardinals yesterday at the same venue.

ARTHUR

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Andre, in setting the stage in 2020, said now that he’s playing rookie ball, he gets to fulfil his dream and he can inspire his younger brother, Andru, to do the same.

“I grew up with him, so it was amazing to see him do the same thing that I did,” Andre said. “I’m happy for him and I’m happy for what we achieved together. I’m happy for him as his older brother.”

As he hopes to see him in the Dominican Republic where they will both be heading for their respective training camps, Andre advised Andru to never

Collie is a former player who didn’t continue on the field, but stuck with it off the field and is now a respected scout in Boston. He welcomed Delancey to the Rod Sox organisation. He said they are looking forward to some great things as they head off to their training camp in the Dominican Republic.

“It’s not what he does on the field, but the type of person that he is off the field,” Collie said. “I think both of those ingredients will help him to succeed as a professional baseball player. And so I want to thank Mr and Mrs Bannister for entrusting your child with the Boston Red Sox and for me to sign him as my first Bahamian player as a scout from the Bahamas.”

His mother, Deisha Bannister, said she and her husband, Colin Bannister, are in awe of Delancey’s accomplishment and they believe in the Red Sox organisation to get the best out of their son as

give up, but continue to press on.

“He will need a lot of dedication. He won’t know what will happen, so just be prepared for anything,” stated the 19-year-old Andre, who plays centrefield. “You go in droughts, but just continue the hard work and never waver.”

Their father, Anthony Arthur, said he was just as proud for Andru as he was for Andre.

“Before this happened, I though I would just sit down and enjoy life, but I’m overwhelmed by his speech and some of the things he said because I used to get in trouble with my wife for them,” father Arthur said.

“I would take them to their baseball practice and

they venture into the pro ranks. “This is a surreal moment for me,” she said.

“Chad has always known what he wanted to do and so I’m just proud that I am able to support him and he can actually realise

when we leave practice, they always wanted me to take them to do some extra practice, so we used to get home round 11:30pm and they had school the next day, so my wife used to get mad with me.

“But I did what they wanted to do.”

After they both ventured into baseball at Freedom Farm, father Arthur said they both joined I-Elite nd now they bosst of being the first two brothers to sign professional contracts, albeit with two different organisations.

Like he did when Andre left, father Arthur said his words of encouragement for Andru is simple.

“The hard work and the sacrifices you made in your

and accomplish his dream today.”

With a village helping to raise her son, Bannister said she’s grateful for all those who assisted in anyway to get him to achieve his accomplishment today.

early career, you will have to continue that and press even harder because this is just the beginning of the road,” father Arthur said.

Sands said they will miss Arthur because of the memories he left with them during the time he participated in I-Elite.

“A lot of folks don’t understand or know how hard it is to be able to sign a professional contract at the age of 16,” Sands said.

“It’s a every day, non stop, seven days of the week, 360, no holidays, no birthdays, nothing.

“It’s baseball all the time, mentally and physically,” he pointed out.

“Your mindset has to be all about your craft and always tell parents, the kids

“I’m thankful for the mentors who were put in his life,” she said.

And as he prepares to leave her nest and embark on his pro career, she had this bit of advice for her son. “Character is who you are when no one is watching,” she stated. “With God, all things are possible, so put God first and he will do the rest.”

Having done what they had to do, Sands said I-Elite is delighted to put Delancey, a smart, determined and mature baseball player into the hands of the Red Sox.

“The first time I saw Chad, I was at JBLN and my eyes caught the way he played. He kind of reminded me of Lucius Fox when he played around 9-10 years,” Sands said. “That was what caught my eyes there.

“So I decided to keep my eyes on him. Fast forward to a couple years later, I saw him again and I told him that he needed to get bigger

are different when they pursue this career. Here in this country, we really don’t place emphasis on sports, but these young men have shown the Bahamas that is possible and it’s no mistake.

“If you put in the work and trust the process, you possibly could have a professional career. So my thing is today, Andru displayed that.

He came into the programme and after taking about a year off, he had to put in the extra work. He has matured as a man.”

And Cartwright said he was able to witness Arthur’s transition from the time he came into the programme as a shy youngster to taking at least 5-6 months before he started to open up in

because he was a little too small. He would have two breakfast and then he was looking for lunch. That’s the determination and dedication that he did to get to this level.”

Cartwright said when Delancey came into I-Elite, he felt he was too small and he wasn’t convinced that he would grow to the size that would enable him to play at the pro level.

“But he put a lot more work in than most of the other guys,” Cartwright said. “He put his trust in the coaches and today he’s reaping his reward. We’re so happy for him and I’m so proud of him because he really put in the work to get here today.”

Steven Curtis, according to Cartwright, was the coach who introduced Delancey to I-Elite and looking at his progress, they made the right choice in making him a part of their organisation because he did all of the things necessary to make it as a pro player.

the absence of his parents. “Andru is a hard working young man. Anytime we went to the United States, he did what it took to get here today,” Cartwright said.

“Andrew was also laid back. He doesn’t get upset. If he has a good game or a bad game, he’s always the same way.

“I think that will prepare him when he goes to pro ball and he has to struggle with the ins and outs of professional baseball.”

Cartwright, however, said they will miss Arthur because he was a leader of the team and as the third or clean up batter, it was only natural that he would be the last one to complete the signing class of 2023.

return at the San Francisco 21. UP NEXT: The 49ers would reach their second

Super Bowl in the past four seasons with a win at Philadelphia.

BENGALS quarterback Joe Burrow (9) passes against the Bills during the second quarter yesterday. (AP Photo/Adrian Kraus)

CHAD Delancey puts on his Boston Red Sox cap as coach Albert Cartwright and Boston’s Bahamian agent Dominique Collie looks on.

Photo: Trevere Saunders

49ERS tight end George Kittle (85) celebrates after catching a pass against the Cowboys yesterday.

(AP Photo/Josie Lepe)

HURTS, EAGLES POUND GIANTS EARLY, COAST TO NFC TITLE GAME

By DAN GELSTON AP Sports Writer

PHILADELPHIA (AP)

— All it took was one throw. Jalen Hurts let it fly on his first pass attempt of the game and suddenly the unease that crept into that often worrisome Philly sports psyche — yeah, but how is his banged-up right shoulder, really? — seemed to dissipate.

Hurts’ shoulder was fine. No doubt about that.

With Hurts in complete control, the Philadelphia Eagles once again look like the team that was rarely challenged during an NFLbest 13-1 start.

Hurts threw two touchdown passes and ran for a score during a dominant first half, and the Eagles overwhelmed the New York Giants 38-7 on Saturday night in an NFC divisional playoff game.

“To have him out there, I know this is high praise, it’s like having Michael Jordan out there,” coach Nick Sirianni said. “He’s your leader. He’s your guy. That’s the biggest respect I can pay to him.”

Top-seeded Philadelphia will host the NFC championship game next Sunday against either Dallas or San Francisco.

Hurts missed two lateseason losses with a

sprained right shoulder and then showed the Giants nothing in the season finale when the Eagles ran a vanilla offence designed to protect the Pro Bowl QB.

Under bright postseason lights at the Linc, the Eagles unleashed an offence designed to clobber the Giants. Hurts dazzled early with his arm and Philadelphia’s offensive line opened big holes for Miles Sanders and Kenneth Gainwell as the Eagles finished with 268 yards on the ground. Hurts finished 16 of 24 for 154 yards.

“Seemed like the old Jalen to me,” Sanders said.

Hurts showed he was fine when he aired out a pass on the second play of the game and hit DeVonta Smith in stride for a 40-yard reception.

The fun was just starting in Philly.

Hurts was flawless on the drive, completing passes of 9 yards, 5 yards, and then — boom — a 16-yard TD pass on a one-handed grab by tight end Dallas Goedert.

Second drive, more of the same. Hurts had completions of 12 yards and 9 yards en route to a 9-yard TD pass to Smith.

It was 14-0 in the first quarter and the Giants already needed a standing eight count. New York turned the ball over on

downs on its first possession, and Daniel Jones was intercepted by James Bradberry on its second.

The Linc was bonkers with full-throated chants of “E-A-G-L-E-S!” filling the air and Sirianni went wild chest-bumping assistants on the sideline.

“Philly’s been drinking since 8am,” Goedert cracked of the raucous atmosphere.

Hurts’ shoulder may not have been 100 percent.

But his passing was: He went 7 of 7 for 89 yards in the first quarter. “This guy

leads, he brings this calmness to the entire team,” Sirianni said. “He’s as tough as they come. To me, there’s not anybody that’s played better football than him this year.”

Even when the calls were obvious for the Eagles, the Giants were helpless to stop them. Case in point: The Eagles had the ball on the New York 3. Give the ball to Boston Scott? Yes they did. Scott scored his 11th touchdown against the Giants for a 21-0 lead. He has only 19 TDs in his career. Giants defensive

coordinator Wink Martindale riled up Philly fans this week when he insisted Scott wasn’t a “Giant killer.”

Hard to argue against that point now.

Hurts wrapped the half with a 5-yard touchdown run — he bobbled the shotgun snap but still coasted untouched into the end zone — for a 28-0 lead. There have been only four more lopsided first-half playoff shutouts in NFL history.

“I’m so proud of this team, how we came out here. I’m so proud of these

fans. It’s a Philly thing, you know? It’s special,” Hurts said.

Gainwell finished with 112 yards on 12 carries, including a late 35-yard touchdown. Sanders had 17 rushes for 90 yards.

Coach Brian Daboll’s Giants were discombobulated from the start and looked nothing like the team that beat the Minnesota Vikings 31-24 last week for their first postseason win since their Super Bowl victory under Tom Coughlin 11 years ago.

Matt Brieda had an 8-yard TD run for the Giants in the third quarter. Daniel Jones was 15 of 27 for 135 yards and a pick.

“Give Philly credit, they did everything better than we did tonight,” Daboll said.

Hurts ran, threw and directed the offence with the same authority as he did when he led the Eagles to a 14-1 start and won over a city that still wasn’t so sure about him in the preseason.

In last year’s playoff loss to Tampa Bay, Hurts threw two interceptions and was just 23 of 43 for 258 yards.

A year later, Hurts is a fan favourite and has the Eagles in the hunt for their first Super Bowl since 2018.

“We’re close to the top,” Sirianni said. “But don’t look at the the top yet.”

CHIEFS, LED BY HOBBLED MAHOMES, BEAT JAGS 27-20 IN PLAYOFFS

By DAVE SKRETTA AP Sports Writer

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Patrick Mahomes pleaded with Chiefs coach Andy Reid to let him stay in the game on Saturday.

He argued with trainers, assistant coaches and anyone else within earshot on the Kansas City sideline to let him play through an injured right ankle.

“I’m not coming out of a playoff game,” Mahomes would say later, “unless they take me out.”

Well, the Chiefs did, forcing him to get X-rays late in the first half of their divisional game against Jacksonville.

But when they came back negative, and Mahomes proved he could protect himself in the halftime locker room, Reid decided to let his All-Pro quarterback back on the field — and he gamely led them to victory.

Mahomes finished with 195 yards passing and two touchdowns, the second capping a 75-yard drive late in the fourth quarter, and lifted Kansas City to a 27-20 victory over the Jaguars and a spot in a fifth straight

AFC championship game.

Mahomes also vowed to be ready for next week against the winner of Sunday’s game between Cincinnati and Buffalo. If the Bengals win, they will be back at Arrowhead Stadium; if the Bills win, they’re headed to Atlanta.

Chad Henne led a 98-yard touchdown drive while Mahomes was out.

Travis Kelce had a careerhigh 14 catches for 98 yards and two scores. Marquez Valdes-Scantling hauled in the eventual clinching TD pass with about 7 minutes left in the game.

“It’s a credit to the team I have around me, the coaches around me and the organisation in general,” Mahomes said. “We try to do whatever we can to be in this position, to get to the AFC championship game and find a way to the Super Bowl.”

The Jaguars, who rallied from a 27-0 deficit to beat the Chargers in the wildcard round, squandered two chances to mount another late rally. The first ended when Jamal Agnew had the ball pop loose inside the Chiefs 5 with about 5 1/2 minutes to go, and the

second when Jaylen Watson made a leaping, one-handed interception near midfield.

The Jaguars’ last-gasp chance ended when Kansas City recovered an onside kick with 24 seconds to go.

Trevor Lawrence finished with 217 yards passing with a touchdown toss to Christian Kirk, who was briefly hurt midway through the fourth quarter but returned to finish the game. Travis Etienne added 62 yards rushing and a touchdown.

“When you get this far you don’t want to only go this far,” the Jaguars’ Foyesade Oluokun said. “You want to keep going.”

“I don’t really have the words right now,” Lawrence added. “The Chiefs did more today than we did.”

Long before Mahomes hobbled to the sideline in pain, he was at his creative best, driving the Chiefs downfield on their opening possession.

There was a shortstopstyle sidearm sling to JuJu Smith-Schuster, a key third down pass to Kelce as he was being dragged to the turf, and the flip pass to his tight end that gave Kansas City a 7-0 lead.

The Jaguars came right back, taking advantage of a big kickoff return and a short field.

Lawrence, whose four touchdown throws helped to stun the Chargers last week, proceeded to hit Kirk for the matching touchdown.

Then, the complexion of the game changed.

Mahomes was moving up in the pocket when Arden Key brought the full weight of his body down on the quarterback’s ankle. Mahomes hobbled to the huddle and managed to get through three more plays to end the first quarter, then was on the field two more plays before Harrison Butker kicked a 50-yard field goal.

During the Jaguars’ ensuing possession, Mahomes got into a heated argument with Reid and the training staff. He then threw down his coat and headed to the locker room, forcing Henne to take over midway

through the second quarter, just as the 37-year-old journeyman did two years ago in a playoff win over Cleveland.

“Yeah, I did not want to go, and they kind of gave me the ultimatum that I wasn’t going back in unless I went in there,” said Mahomes, who cheered on Henne’s 98-yard drive from the sideline, wearing a puffy winter coat on a cold, sleeting night.

As the second half began, though, that familiar red No. 15 jersey was trotting back onto the field.

“It was a short leash,” Reid acknowledged. “If I felt like he wasn’t able to handle it, he would have been out.”

His right ankle heavily taped, Mahomes struggled to move around, but simply his presence seemed to calm the Chiefs — and their angst-filled fan base. Butker added a second 50-yard field goal late in the third quarter to extend the lead

to 20-10, and when the AFC South champs answered with a touchdown of their own, so did the Chiefs.

Mahomes drove them downfield for one last score that proved to be the margin of victory.

“We know that if it’s up to Pat, he’s going to be in there. I’m sure he had some words with everyone on the sideline that he wanted to be in there as fast as possible,” Kelce said afterward.

“It’s just a different feeling when one-five is in there. He can make anything happen, even on one ankle.”

STATS AND STREAKS

Mahomes improved to 5-0 in the divisional round of the playoffs. He’s thrown 28 TD passes and three interceptions in 10 home playoff games. Henne was 5 of 7 for 23 yards and a score.

Jacksonville had eight wins as an underdog this season, tied for the most in the Super Bowl era.

PHILADELPHIA Eagles cornerback Darius Slay (2), defensive tackle Fletcher Cox (91) and safety

C.J. Gardner-Johnson (23) gesture toward spectators during the second half of an NFL divisional round playoff football game against the New York Giants on Saturday in Philadelphia. (AP Photo/Matt Slocum)

‘BIG C’ DELANCEY GOES TO RED SOX

By BRENT STUBBS Senior Sports Reporter bstubbs@tribunemedia.net

DOMINIQUE Collie felt he could not have signed a more deserving player to the Boston Red Sox than International Elite Baseball Academy’s shortstop Chad Delancey.

In his first official duty as a Bahamian agent for Boston, Collie signed Delancey to his official Red Sox contract on Saturday in the foyer of the Thomas A Robinson National Stadium in front of family members, friends and members of the I-Elite progamme.

Delancey, better known at I-Elite as ‘the Big C’ or the ‘philosopher,’ said he can now fulfil his childhood dream, which came at the age of five, to play professional baseball.

“When I was 12 years old when I joined the programme, I knew that I could do it,” 16-year-old Delancey said.

Now that he’s on his way, Delancey said he

‘Clean-up batter’ signs with Cards

By BRENT STUBBS Senior Sports Reporter bstubbs@tribunemedia.net

Andru Arthur, known as the “clean-up batter” for the International Elite Baseball Academy’s travelling team, was the last of four signees of professional contracts during the month of January.

Arthur, following in the footsteps of his older brother Andre, who signed with the Miami Marlins in 2000, inked his name on a deal with the St Louis Cardinals yesterday in the foyer of the Thomas A Robinson National Stadium in front of family, friends and members of the I-Elite Baseball Academy, headed by Geron Sands and Albert Cartwright. On hand for the ceremony was the Cardinals’ international crosschecker, Damaso Espino, who welcomed Arthur, an outfielder who started out at

Freedom Farm, to the St Louis organisation.

Espino thanked Arthur’s parents, Beulah and Anthony Arthur, for entrusting their son with the Cardinals’ organisation, and I-Elite and their coaching staff, led by Sands and Cartwright, for working them to achieve this day.

Espino said this is a day to celebrate all of the sacrifices, hard work and dedication that was put in to achieve this feat by Arthur.

“The Cardinals organisation take pride not only in the quality of our players, but also the quality of their character, the people and the place where they come from,” Espino said.

“We are very comfortable in the quality of a player and the person we are bringing into the organisation.”

The 16-year-old Arthur said he knows it will be a long process as he starts his journey in the Dominican

Republic, but he’s prepared to continue to work hard to achieve his ultimate goal, which is to play in Major League Baseball.

“I was very excited. This was a lifelong event that I was waiting for and now it has finally come through,”

Arthur said. “I need to work on getting my load back.”

After watching his brother, Andre, sign his contract, Andru said the goal was to follow suit.

‘BUDDY’ SCORES 22 IN LOSS TO SUNS, AYTON OUT WITH NON-COVID-19 ILLNESS

By DAVID BRANDT AP Sports Writer

PHOENIX (AP) — The broad-shouldered Ish Wainright looks as if he should be making plays in the NFL instead of the NBA.

For a while, that was the dream.

But Wainright’s athletic career is back on the basketball court these days, and he used his surprising skill set to help the shorthanded Phoenix Suns win their second straight game by beating the Indiana Pacers 112-107 on Saturday night.

“Obviously, you need talent in this league,” Suns coach Monty Williams said. “But playing hard, with talent, it’s a great combination.”

Josh Okogie led the Suns with 24 points and 10 rebounds while Mikal Bridges added 22 points, but it was a couple clutch

2021 WNBA MVP Jonquel Jones ‘the perfect fit’ in New York

By DOUG FEINBERG AP Basketball Writer

NEW YORK (AP) — After spending her entire career in Connecticut, Jonquel Jones was ready for a change.

So she looked around and decided that New York would be the right place for her to continue her WNBA career.

“I’m excited to be here. pleasure to be part of this organisation,” Jones said. “For me playing against the Liberty last year I saw a

shift in the culture. The way they played, high-octane basketball. For me I wanted to be a part of that. To be in a city like New York, it speaks for itself. Felt like the right move. I know it’s the right move for this chapter in my life.”

The 2021 MVP was introduced by the Liberty at a press conference Friday a few days after the team traded for her as part of a three-team deal with the Connecticut Sun and Dallas Wings. “For me any time you have a chance to get

someone like this, you jump at that,” Liberty GM Jonathan Kolb said. “Players like Jonquel don’t become available very often. Pairing her with Sabrina (Ionescu) is exciting. They are going to be a dynamic duo for a very long time.”

Kolb said that he has had a Liberty jersey for Jones in his office for a year, hoping she might become available. She had one year left on her contract with the Sun before telling the

PAGE 15

Andy Murray’s exhausting Australian Open ends with loss

Except there would be no five-set thriller this time for Murray and his many backers.

MELBOURNE, Australia (AP) — Andy Murray evened his Australian Open match at a set apiece and stood in a corner of Margaret Court Arena with his hands on his hips, staring up into the stands, where spectators were jumping and screaming, pumping their arms and waving blue-andwhite Scottish flags.

All of those fans, and Murray himself, could

ANDY MURRAY

By HOWARD FENDRICH AP Tennis Writer SEE

have been excused in that moment for thinking, “Here we go again!”

No after-midnight finish. No classic comeback. And no victory.

No, the wear-and-tear of Murray’s two previous unending, unyielding, performances simply took too much out of his 35-year-old body and metal hip, leaving him with more than a half-dozen blisters and an

PAGE 16

BROTHERS Andru and Andre Arthur share a special moment.