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Volume: 121 No.56, February 12, 2024

THE PEOPLE’S PAPER: PRICE–$1

GOVT PUSH BACK ON CRIME FEARS Alerts ‘have had impact’ but campaign planned to protect reputation

By RASHAD ROLLE Tribune News Editor rrolle@tribunemedia.net OFFICE of the Prime Minister communications director Latrae Rahming said the Davis administration acknowledges that travel advisories and global reports about crime in the country have affected the tourism industry, with the government preparing to launch an aggressive campaign to promote and protect the country’s reputation.

“The prime minister has chaired a number of meetings, has already spoken to key stakeholders and is going to look at how the government can ensure there is no fallout on businesses,” Mr Rahming said.

“The prime minister has already spoken to a number of CEOs, including Baha Mar, Atlantis and a number of major players. Ahead of the spring break season, the government is going to ensure that it signals

BALLET ON THE BEACH

SEE PAGE THREE

‘FULL COOPERATION’ EXPECTED IN TOURIST RAPE INVESTIGATION

By EARYEL BOWLEG Tribune Staff Reporter ebowleg@tribunemedia.net NATIONAL Security Minister Wayne Munroe said he expects full cooperation and honesty from all parties as police and the Federal Bureau of Investigations investigate a claim that two American women were sexually assaulted in Grand Bahama earlier this month.

Investigators, he said, “will insist on CCTV footage, and the resort seems to indicate they are providing it to the police. The cruise line participated by having their doctor do the rape kit when the young ladies refused to stay on island to do it. No doubt they’ll cooperate by handing over the rape kit to the police, and so, yes, everyone has a duty to cooperate with the investigation.”

SEE PAGE FIVE

TWO of the Covent Garden Dance principle dancers start their rehearsals beach side yesterday ahead of ballet performances at Old Fort Bay this week. See PAGE TWO for the full story.

Photo: Moise Amisial

Tributes to ‘precious gem’ Sweeting RECORD

By LYNAIRE MUNNINGS Tribune Staff Reporter lmunnings@tribunemedia.net

ANDREA Sweeting, president of the Sister Sister Breast Cancer Support Group and a long-time cancer advocate, died on Saturday in Florida.

She celebrated her 75th birthday on February 7.

“We are deeply saddened by the loss of our hero. Our hearts are broken,” her family said in a statement.

“However, we are comforted by the countless lives she has touched. Heaven

has gained our precious gem.”

The brainchild of Dr Locksley Munroe and Dr Charles Diggiss, the Sister Sister Breast Cancer Support Group was launched in September 2000 as a non-profit charitable group providing mental, spiritual, and financial assistance to women diagnosed with breast cancer.

Prime Minister Philip “Brave” Davis called the SEE PAGE TWO

Nassau & Bahama Islands’ Leading Newspaper

BREAKER CHARLTON SETS WORLD 60M HURDLES BEST

SEE SPORTS

PAGE 2, Monday, February 12, 2024

THE TRIBUNE

Ballet on the beach

TWO of the Covent Garden Dance principle dancers start their rehearsals beach side yesterday ahead of ballet performances at Old Fort Bay this week.

Photo: Matt Brady FOR two nights only this week, some of the world’s most iconic ballet dancers from one of the most revered ballet companies will headline two dynamic shows of grace and precision set on the Great Lawn of Old Fort Bay Club for ‘Iconique’ Dinner Ballet Gala.

The 360-seat, all-inclusive dinner, presented by the Covent Garden Dance Company and Old Fort Bay Club, will feature three sections of Classical, Neo-Classical, and Contemporary performance ballet.

The show has been dubbed ‘some of the world’s most iconic dancers in one of the world’s most beautiful locations’ and is scheduled for two special and intimate performances in Old Fort on February 14 and 16.

Covent Garden Dance is world-renowned for its ability to produce and present some of the most acclaimed and admired ballet and dance gala programs.

Covent Garden Dance director Matt Brady described it as a “world premiere of a gala program created especially for Nassau, Bahamas that will probably never be repeated with this collection of dancers.”

“The iconic stars aligned,” Brady said of this one in a lifetime evening of ballet. “The cast are all iconic in each of their own ways. There are ten cast members, all of whom I know and/or have worked with for the exact reason they are here. They are all incredible.

From the well known British dancer Xander Parish, who was the only British Dancer to make it to Principal at The Mariinsky world-renowned Russian company, to Mackenzie Brown the youngest dancer to ever have made Principal at Stuttgart Ballet.

Each and every one of these dancers is iconic in their own way.” The all-star collection of ballet dancers includes internationally acclaimed and Nikinsky Award winning Lucia Lacarra, Prix de Lausanne winner Matthew Golding, who has earned numerous major roles including Prince Florimund in the Sleeping Beauty, Prince Siegfried in Swan Lake and Fate in Carlos Acosta’s Carmen.

One of the most highly regarded principal dancers with the Royal Danish Ballet, Jon Axel Fransson, will also grace the stage as a part of the ensemble.

‘Iconique’ is anticipated to be one of the most magical evenings of ballet and dance The Bahamas has ever witnessed with powerful performances and the best in gourmet dining.

Holly Jean Dorger, Ksenia Ovsyanick, Zdenek Konvalina, Mara Galeazzi and Jason Kittelberger will all complete this ‘iconic’ company for this stellar night of ballet.

“The programme we have put together is one that we feel will appeal to all across the board,” Brady added. “If you have

never been to see a ballet performance before, then this is the perfect production to come to because it is a gala-style format with a collection of short works performed by some of the greatest dancers in the world. Each work is around four to seven minutes long and there are a variety of styles and themes. So, if one work might not be to your taste the next probably will.

Each work on this program is incredibly special. Even if you are a well-heeled balletomane, there will be works on here that you will have never seen that will stay with you forever.”

With only 36 tables available, Iconique is designed to be an intimate event.

Tickets are $350 can be reserved at events@coventgardendance.com or through the Old Fort offices.

The company of dancers will arrive for rehearsals the week of the two shows and will take the time to meet local dancers, learning the craft of ballet in Nassaubased dance companies.

Brady hopes that showcasing the traditional and modern dances will energise Bahamian ballerinas to maintain their love of the dance.

Brady said The Bahamas provided the ideal location for ‘Iconique’ after the pandemic placed a halt on plans that were already in the works since 2019.

“The Bahamas are the perfect backdrop for our concept and we were determined to make it happen,” Brady said. “Anita Wheeler of Old Fort Bay Club serendipitously came to our flagship production at Hatch House in the UK last July and got in touch to tell us about Old Fort Bay Club. And so, this new journey began.”

TRIBUTES TO ‘PRECIOUS GEM’ ANDREA SWEETING from page one two-time cancer survivor a “symbol of hope and resilience”.

“In The Bahamas, Andrea’s impact was profound,” he said in a statement yesterday. “She transformed her personal trials into a nationwide crusade for awareness, support, and healing, touching lives in every corner of our islands.”

“Her legacy is woven into the fabric of our community, a lasting reminder

of what it means to fight with grace and to lead with love.

“Andrea’s work with the Sister Sister Breast Cancer Support Group was more than a mission; it was a movement that galvanised our nation to stand in solidarity with those affected by breast cancer.

“She inspired us to embrace the power of community and recognisze that we are stronger together in the face of adversity.”

Details of her celebration of life will be announced shortly, relatives said.

THE TRIBUNE

Monday, February 12, 2024, PAGE 3 Photo: Dante Carrer

Govt push back on crime fears from page one the right message that The Bahamas is a safe place for both guests and visitors.

It will be a collaborative approach with all stakeholders coming together on how we tackle the issue with the travel advisory and most recent situation with

Grand Bahama.”

Earlier this month, two American women alleged they were sexually assaulted in Grand Bahama and that Bahamian police botched the investigation.

Police have pushed back against their claims, saying the women turned down medical attention. Twentyfive people have been killed

locally in one of the deadliest starts to a year in the country.

Mr Rahming said: “There was an impact, but consistent trends do demonstrate that things are levelling out and that we have to now continue to build on a strategy.”

Privately, some in the government and national

security system say people feel safe because most killings are targeted and retaliatory, not random.

Mr Rahming said the government’s crime plan is focused on disrupting gangs because many of the people killed “were either known to the police or were out on bail for a particular issue.”

“There have been some

instances where you have a domestic violence issue and we are concerned that unintended targets are struck, and this is why our message is always to be very conscious of who it is that you are with and the company you keep because you could find yourself in a very unfortunate situation or one that costs you your

life,” he said.

“Bahamians see crime as an issue that needs to be solved. Whilst they might accept that these are targeted killings, they do not like the possibility of the callousness of persons who believe they can execute such heinous acts any time in the day, and anywhere in the day.”

‘WE ARE COUNTERING NEGATIVE REPORTS’

By LEANDRA ROLLE Tribune Staff Reporter lrolle@tribunemedia.net ECONOMIC Affairs Minister Michael Halkitis said government is working aggressively to counteract negative international reports about the country’s soaring murder rate and believes that its crime-fighting efforts will soon bear fruit.

“Unfortunately, over the years we have experienced some what are called spikes where we see January was a horrible month in terms of that and the government has done some things and police are doing some things,” he said during a press conference at the Office of The Prime Minister on Friday.

Mr Halkitis said the government’s message to tourists remains the same, adding: “We believe The Bahamas is still a safe place to visit.”

His comments came as police reported another shooting in the Nassau Village community that left a man in hospital. His condition is said to be stable.

Mr Halkitis said the government is working to combat crime so it doesn’t deter tourist arrivals.

“We would not like to see it get to the point where it becomes an issue or a big issue where people are making decisions as to where to vacation,” he added.

“And so definitely given the fact that … we see things on social media, we have to accelerate our sort of counteraction to make sure it does not get to the point where we see significant numbers of cancellations to the point where it begins to impact our industry.

“We do not want to get to that tipping point where once you get to a certain point, there’s no turning back and people start to use

that as a factor in that decision. We don’t think it has gotten to that point, but we need to continue to make sure that it doesn’t.”

Twenty-five people have been killed in 2024, one of the deadliest starts to a year in the country’s history.

Deputy Commissioner of Police Leamond Deleveaux recently said the public should expect more aggressive policing and potential inconveniences in the days ahead.

“It may be inconveniencing for some motorists and some members of the public, but we will not rest until we address this crime issue,” he said on the sidelines of a Rotary Club of West Nassau meeting on Thursday.

“You’re gonna see a number of things. Many of those I cannot reveal to the public. I can tell you, I can assure you, the Bahamian people will be very pleased with the aggressive way we will police this country.”

MINISTER of Economic Affairs and leader of government business in the Senate Michael Halkitis speaks during a media briefing at the Office of The Prime Minister on Friday.

Photo: Dante Carrer

HALKITIS: ECONOMIC ZONES WERE NOT ACHIEVING GOALS

By LYNAIRE MUNNINGS Tribune Staff Reporter lmunnings@tribunemedia.net ECONOMIC Affairs Minister Michael Halkitis said the Davis administration discontinued the Economic Empowerment Zones programme, which provided some tax exemptions to inner city residents and businesses, because it was not achieving its objectives.

Former Prime Minister Dr Hubert Minnis, who established what was known as the Over-the-Hill programme, has repeatedly noted his concern about the government cancelling the initiative.

Dr Minnis claimed that many employees and

businesses were affected by the cancellation. “When we were the government, they used to bombard us every other day about expanding it,” he said last week.

During a press conference at the Office of the Prime Minister on Friday, Mr Halkitis responded: “I guess the intention was to help people to develop their properties, but what we found was that people who by large living in the area if they owned the property at all, did not have the financial wherewithal to say make an investment.”

So you had one or two large businesses come in and take advantage of investment and you can see some of them if you cruise over the hill. In certain

areas of Over-the-Hill you can see some big businesses that were able to come in and take advantage of the tax-free incentive.

So we felt that that was not achieving its intended consequence.”

He said not all parts of the programme have been scrapped. He said businesses in the zones earning $5m or less can still apply for a trade certificate that waives licence fees and allows them to import one vehicle without paying customs duties or other taxes.

He said: “So sometimes it might be a useful political tool to beat us with, but you have to be able to look at what was the intended consequence.”

“What did you intend

to achieve? Did it achieve those intended outcomes?

And is there a better alternative?”

Launched in November 2018, the Economic Empowerment Zones initially targeted residents of Bain and Grants Town and Centreville, but was extended to the St Barnabas and Englerston constituencies.

The programme allowed exemptions on real property tax, business licence tax, custom duties on materials necessary for constructing, equipping, and completing buildings, excise taxes, and stamp duty taxes.

Critics, however, said the programme did not address the acute needs of residents in the area.

PAGE 4, Monday, February 12, 2024

THE TRIBUNE

ROYAL Bahamas Defence Force (RBDF) and Royal Bahamas Police Force (RBPF) pallbearers carry the body of former Member of Parliament and Ambassador Dr Elwood Donaldson into Zion Baptist Church for his staterecognised funeral on Friday. Dr Donaldson was one of the members of the 1967 House of Assembly and went on to become a member of the Dissident Eight, which led to the formation of the Free National Movement.

Photos: Dante Carrer

A final farewell to Dr Elwood Donaldson SPEAKING at the funeral of Dr Elwood Donaldson are, clockwise from above left, Michael Donaldson, and Prime Minister Philip “Brave” Davis. Reverend TG Morrison is also pictured during the ceremony.

FAMILY members of former Member of Parliament and Ambassador Dr Elwood Donaldson pose for a group photos as they arrive at Zion Baptist Church.

GOVERNOR General Cynthia “Mother” Pratt during the state-recognised funeral of former Member of Parliament and Ambassador Dr Elwood Donaldson at Zion Baptist Church on February 9, 2024.

THE TRIBUNE

Monday, February 12, 2024, PAGE 5 A FILE photograph of the Carmichael Road Detention Centre.

No answer yet for woman who claimed sex attack in detention

By EARYEL BOWLEG Tribune Staff Reporter ebowleg@tribubemedia.net A WOMAN who claimed she was sexually assaulted at the Carmichael Road Detention Centre in November is still waiting for police to conclude their investigations into the matter.

Chief Superintendent

of Police Michael Johnson said yesterday police have no update.

In December, the woman told The Tribune she was sexually assaulted in immigration custody and continually abused after complaining about an officer’s actions.

The woman, who said she was pregnant at the time of the assault, claimed an

officer touched her sexually without her consent.

The 40-year-old woman, who had been detained on November 11, was released from custody after The Tribune contacted immigration officials and persons from the Jamaican Consulate in The Bahamas got involved.

Her lawyers also applied for leave to issue a writ of

habeas corpus concerning her. The application said she was never charged with a crime despite being detained for 40 days with her 11-year-old son.

An affidavit from the woman’s Bahamian fiance accompanied the application.

It said: “I have also been reliably informed through an anonymous caller who

claims to be an immigration officer that the applicants have both been physically abused and that the first applicant has been sexually assaulted by an immigration officer at this undisclosed facility.”

The identities of the people involved have been withheld to protect the alleged victims.

The alleged victim

tearfully recounted her experience and forwarded pictures purporting to show bruises on her body.

They showed faint black marks on her arms, and her hair appeared badly cut.

She said officers claimed that her injuries were selfinflicted, but she insisted she had no access to objects to harm herself.

‘FULL COOPERATION’ EXPECTED IN TOURIST RAPE INVESTIGATION from page one Meanwhile, Ladonna Batty, reported to be a family nurse practitioner from Arkansas, was said to be on the same cruise as Amber Shearer and Dongayla Dobson, the two women who claim they

were raped on a beach at Pirates Cove by two men who worked there.

Ms Batty told a Kentucky news station, LEX18, that when she observed the women, she took out her phone and “immediately started charting everything, documenting everything I’d seen”.

She said the women were in “horrible shambles”.

“Out of my 20-odd years of practising, it was the worst scene that I had ever had to work on. It was a horrible situation for both girls.”

She said she found the girls dishevelled, sick, and bruised.

ENVIRONMENT GROUP PAYS VISIT TO MINISTER

LAST week, members of the Ethan S Bain Environmental Health Foundation (ESBEHF) paid a courtesy call on Vaughn Miller, Minister for the Environment and Natural Resources, to discuss the group’s current projects and future objectives.

During the meeting, representatives highlighted environmental challenges facing our country, particularly littering and improper disposal of waste. The group also spoke about the critical role students and environmental health professionals play in a sustainable future for the country.

The meeting concluded with discussions on partnership opportunities between the ministry and ESBEHF. Formed in 2006 in memory of Bahamian environmentalist Ethan S Bain, the

non-profit is focused on providing scholarships and professional development opportunities for environmental health professionals. The group has also provided garbage bins and cleaning supplies to various organisations and community groups and launched an anti-littering campaign in 2023.

Pictured from left, Jacqueline Bain, founder, ESBEHF; Vaughn Miller, Minister for the Environment and Natural Resources; Janice Miller, foundation chair; and Shonalee Johnson, assistant chair at ESBEHF. For more information on ESBEHF, visit ethansbain.org, email connect@ethansbain.org or follow on Facebook.

Photo: Ministry for the Environment and Natural Resources

‘SNATCH ‘EM’ OPERATION CITES TRAFFIC VIOLATIONS

By DENISE MAYCOCK Tribune Freeport Reporter dmaycock@tribunemedia.net ABOUT 38 people were cited for traffic violations during a police operation conducted at

the Warren J Levarity Highway.

Police officers at the Eight Mile Rock Division launched operation “Snatch ’Em” on Thursday between 5pm and 8pm.

The operation focused

on prolific offenders and motorists who failed to adhere to traffic laws and regulations.

Drivers are reminded to obey the speed limit and comply with all Road Traffic Regulations.

She believed Ms Shearer and Ms Dobson had been assaulted and were under the influence of drugs.

“Anybody should be able to go on vacation and have a drink or have a Coca-Cola or anything and take some pictures and not get brutally assaulted,” she said.

Ms Shearer praised Ms

Batty.

She was our advocate,” she said. “Had it not been for Ladonna advocating for us, I don’t know what would have happened.”

LEX18 also reported Ms Batty provided a statement to Carnival Cruise security.

In a statement, the FBI told LEX18: “Through the

FBI’s legal attaché office in Nassau, we have strong, established relationships and stand ready to assist in any way the Bahamian government may request.

We refer you to the Royal Bahamas Police Force, which is leading the investigation, for any comment on this matter.”

PAGE 6, Monday, February 12, 2024

THE TRIBUNE

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‘Trump is putting allies at risk’ THE head of the NATO military alliance warned yesterday that Donald Trump was putting the safety of US troops and their allies at risk after the Republican presidential front-runner said Russia should be able to do “whatever the hell they want” to NATO members who don’t meet their defense spending targets.

“Any suggestion that allies will not defend each other undermines all of our security, including that of the US, and puts American and European soldiers at increased risk,” NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said in a statement.

Speaking Saturday at a rally in Conway, South Carolina, Trump recalled how as president he told an unidentified NATO member that he would “encourage” Russia to do as it wishes in cases of NATO allies who are “delinquent”. “‘You didn’t pay? You’re delinquent?’” Trump recounted saying. “‘No I would not protect you. In fact, I would encourage them to do whatever the hell they want. You gotta pay. You gotta pay your bills.’”

Trump’s remarks caused deep concern in Poland, which was under Russian control in past centuries, and where anxieties are high over the war Russia is waging just across the Polish border in Ukraine.

“We have a hot war at our border,” Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk said Sunday, voicing concerns about whether the United States will show “full solidarity with other NATO countries in this confrontation that promises to last for a long time with Russia.”

“We must realise that the EU cannot be an economic and civilizational giant and a dwarf when it comes to defence, because the world has changed,” he argued in a town hall speech marking the start of his party’s campaign for local elections this spring.

In 2014, NATO allies pledged to move toward spending 2% of GDP on defense by 2024. According to NATO estimates in early 2023, 10 of its 30 member states at the time were close to or above the 2% mark, while 13 were spending 1.5% or less.

No country is in debt to any other, or to NATO. In a statement, Trump senior adviser Jason Miller said that Trump would be able to more effectively force allies to increase their NATO spending

compared to President Joe Biden, and that “when you don’t pay your defence spending you can’t be surprised that you get more war”.

Stoltenberg said he expects that, “regardless of who wins the presidential election, the US will remain a strong and committed NATO ally.”

The German government did not officially comment on Trump’s remarks, but its foreign office pointed out NATO’s solidarity principle in a statement on X. “‘One for all and all for one.’ This NATO creed keeps more than 950 million people safe,” it said.

Trump’s comments were of particular concern to NATO’s front-line countries, like Poland and the Baltic states of Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia, which were either under the control of Moscow or fully incorporated into the Soviet Union during the Cold War. Polish President Andrzej Duda, who is allied with the right-wing opposition, and who was seen as friendly to Trump during his presidency, tweeted that the Polish-US alliance must be strong “regardless of who is currently in power in Poland and the USA”.

In an editorial Sunday, German daily Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung also called for European nations to spend more on defence.

It said if Trump wins the presidency again, statements like the one he made on Saturday night “will increase the risk of Putin expanding his war. Europeans can only do one thing to counter this: finally invest in their military security in line with the seriousness of the situation”.

Trump’s tenure, which was marked by his open admiration for Russian President Vladimir Putin, became a near-existential challenge for NATO, an organisation largely controlled by the United States. Stoltenberg was praised for his diplomatic skills in keeping NATO together during the Trump years, but the former Norwegian prime minister is stepping down.

Under NATO’s mutual defense clause, Article 5 of its founding treaty, all allies commit to help any member who comes under attack. The article has only ever been activated once – by the US in the wake of the Sept 11, 2001, attacks.

By VANESSA GERA and LORNE COOK Associated Press

Losing hope EDITOR, The Tribune.

AS THE country grapples with the increase in murders on our streets or the recent crime “spurt” as defined by the Minister of National Security, the strategy of the government to address the crime problem remains unclear.

As I review the messages in the various chat groups of which I am a part, I realise that on a daily basis Bahamians are losing hope.

Losing hope in their government and losing hope in the ability of their Prime Minister and Minister of National Security to do all that is necessary to tackle the crime crisis that the country is facing. While the Prime Minister has been an advocate on the world stage for the climate crisis and continues to travel the world sounding the alarm in relation to this issue, I do not see the same vigor and focus being given to the crime crisis in The Bahamas. Instead, what I do see is lots of politics, public relations, slogans, and platitudes.

In a recent address to the nation, The Prime Minister announced, “we’re going on the offensive” and spoke

to the immediate response that his government would take to address the crime issue. This response, as touted by the Prime Minister, would involve a three-staged approach which would include clearing the gangs out of the communities, keeping the communities safe by having police maintain a “relentless presence” and investing in those communities. In addition to his address, the Prime Minister recently tabled the Bail (Amendment) Bill, 2024 which he claimed, “is an important step forward to save lives”.

Further, the Prime Minister presented “Crackdown 2024” which comprises five pillars, including prevention, strengthening policing, prosecution, punishment and rehabilitation. While all of this sounds good and looks good on paper, we have yet so see any concrete evidence of the words spoken by the Prime Minister being translated into action.

As the Prime Minster seeks to tackle the crime problem in The Bahamas, I encourage him to look beyond his speech writers and to read the National Development

Plan which provides an holistic approach to crime, including a number of short, medium and long term strategies that may be used to combat the issue.

As noted in the National Development Plan, while the police are doing all that they can with the resources that they have been given, they do not have the right “mix of officers, orientation and technology” to achieve the desired results. We have yet to see any movement towards a national “zero tolerance” strategy for violent crimes, like murder, or the establishment of a DNA lab to assist the police in their efforts or the swift expedition of cases involving violence as addressed in the Plan. It is my hope that the Prime Minster will move beyond the politics, public relations, slogans and platitudes and that he will use his platform and the many resources and expertise at his disposal to implement the strategies outlined in the National Development Plan and to effectively tackle the crime problem in The Bahamas.

THE BAYMAN Nassau, February 7, 2024.

TAYLOR Swift embraces Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce after the NFL Super Bowl 58 football game against the San Francisco 49ers, in Las Vegas yesterday. The Chiefs won 25-22 against the 49ers.

Photo: Julio Cortez/AP

The middle class under pressure EDITOR, The Tribune.

MUCH has been made of Prime Minister Philip Brave Davis’ recent trip to Uganda in which he took part in the Non-Aligned Movement Summit. It was probably a representative for the Davis camp who took photos of him feeding chimpanzees while in Uganda, apparently not realising the backlash it would cause.

I would like to use the dire situation with the chimpanzees as an analogy of what is currently happening to the Bahamian middleclass. Both groups should be considered endangered species, although I am beginning to question if this current Progressive Liberal Party administration is even remotely aware of what is going on under its own nose.

The International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) upgraded the threat status of western chimpanzees in Africa from endangered to critically endangered in 2016.

According to its data, between 10,000 to 52,000 wild chimpanzees are believed to be living in Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone.

The population of this species has been decimated by poachers throughout the twentieth century. Its decline has been described as unprecedented by the IUCN. That would be an apt description of the rapid decline of the Bahamian middle-class over the past five years. I decided to address this matter after seeing a Facebook post about a ZNS report regarding the financial situation of working Bahamians.

According to the report, 90 percent of Bahamians have less than $1,000 in their savings account. This is eerily similar to a Central Bank of the Bahamas report published by Eyewitness News in 2019.

LETTERS letters@tribunemedia.net I can only imagine how worse the financial situation of tens of thousands of Bahamians is today in light of the continued rising cost of living in 2024. Bahamians are now having to live from hand to mouth.

The upcoming NIB increase will only add further stress to an already unbearable crisis which no one in this PLP government seems to be cognizant of.

The middle-class has declined to the extent that we can state with absolute certainty that, for the most part, there are only two financial demographics in The Bahamas: wealthy and poor. There’s hardly an in-between.

And the few middle-class Bahamians that remain are dwindling at a rapid pace.

Moreover, despite the record breaking tourist arrival numbers, it feels as if we’re stuck in an economic slump similar to the tail end of the 9/11 attacks on North America in 2001.

This is without a doubt the worst economic boom I’ve ever witnessed. Bahamians, by and large, are not feeling the impact of it at all. It is a mirage.

By no means are I placing the entire blame for the inflation crisis on the Davis government. But I’d be lying if I were to suggest that certain policies implemented since September 2021 haven’t contributed to the crisis.

As well, Davis must understand that Bahamians punished the previous Free National Movement government of Dr Hubert Minnis for the devastating fallout brought on by Hurricane Dorian and the COVID-19 pandemic. Both crises were external factors that Minnis had no control over. Yet his government

would lose in landslide fashion in September 2021 because of them.

If Bahamians are willing to punish a government for Hurricane Dorian and COVID, they will most definitely punish a government for the current inflation, the likes of which we have never witnessed before in the post-independence era.

In closing, what makes this current PLP government so unique to the Christie and Minnis administrations is that it, unlike the two, seems hellbent on not throwing a bone at the Bahamian people.

By this, I mean that when the Christie government introduced valued added tax in 2015, it did so at the rate of 7.5 percent, instead of the 15 percent rate as was proposed by the foreign consultants brought in during the rollout of the taxation system.

In 2018, when the Minnis government raised VAT from 7.5 percent to 12 percent, it exempted breadbasket items from the tax.

Your electric bill also had to be a certain amount before VAT kicked in. Both governments understand the delicate art of negotiating. There has to be a compromise.

Unlike Christie and Minnis, this government has not only not thrown a bone at the Bahamian people, but has grabbed at the bone they met the people with.

Fast approaching the midway point of his tenure, Davis has a grand opportunity to change the narrative before it reaches a point of no return.

Like the chimpanzees the Ugandan conservationists are working hard to preserve, Davis must now get to work in preserving the middle-class before it becomes extinct.

KEVIN EVANS Freeport, Grand Bahama February 7, 2024.

THE TRIBUNE

Monday, February 12, 2024, PAGE 7

A LARGE cargo vessel broke loose from Arawak Cay and ran aground off Saunders Beach on February 7, 2024.

Photo: Dante Carrer

GROUNDED CARGO SHIP HAD CREW ABOARD

By DENISE MAYCOCK Tribune Freeport Reporter dmaycock@tribunemedia.net

FRED Culmer, senior official at the Port Department, said the cargo vessel stuck in the sand at Saunders Beach has not been

abandoned and efforts are still underway to free it.

On Wednesday evening, the 200ft Zanzidar broke loose from its mooring during inclement weather.

It is owned by Amilcar Carey of Incredible Bulk

Freight, a distribution, freight, and logistics company based in the Bahamas.

Mr Culmer said the vessel was not unmanned as initially reported in The Tribune.

“There was a crew on

DOUBLE MURDER ACCUSED FACES COURT

By PAVEL BAILEY Tribune Staff Reporter pbailey@tribunemedia.net A MAN was remanded in custody on Friday after being accused of two fatal shootings in New Providence in the last two months.

One of the victims in this matter was on bail for murder at the time of his death.

Acting Chief Magistrate Roberto Reckley charged Raequon Alexis, 20, with two counts of murder.

Alexis’s accomplice, Eric Simms, 21, was charged with a single count of murder.

Levan Johnson and Ciji Smith-Curry

represented the accused.

Inspector Deon Barr served as prosecutor.

Alexis, along with accomplices, allegedly fatally shot 40-year-old Christopher Gibson in a drive-by shooting on West End Avenue and Market Street on January 19.

The white Japanese vehicle used in this incident was found abandoned by police later the same day.

Both Alexis and Simms allegedly opened fire on Courtney Belton as he sat in his Honda Pilot in St Andrew’s Beach Estates on February 3.

While the 30-year-old victim was pronounced dead at the scene, the suspects allegedly fled

the scene in a dark Japanese vehicle that headed north on Yamacraw Hill Road.

Belton was on release for a pending murder charge for his alleged involvement in the shooting death of Dwayne Thurston on September 20, 2015 on Meadow Street.

The accused were told that their matters would be transferred to the Supreme Court by a voluntary bill of indictment (VBI). They will be sent to the Bahamas Department of Correctional Services until the higher court grants them bail.

The VBIs in this matter are due for service on May 30.

$30,000 BAIL FOR SEX OFFENCE SUSPECT

By PAVEL BAILEY Tribune Staff Reporter pbailey@tribunemedia.net A MAN was granted $30,000 bail last week as he awaits trial for a sexual offence.

Justice Gregory Hilton made a bail decision for Bruce Knowles as he awaited trial for a charge of unlawful sexual intercourse.

Under the terms of his bail Knowles must

surrender his passport and will be electronically monitored.

He is also expected to sign in at the Central Police Station every Monday, Wednesday and Friday by 6pm.

Knowles was warned that he is not to live within five miles of the complainants and not to have any contact with them.

Another man was denied bail on stealing charges

after the Justice noted he was a repeat offender.

Justice Hilton denied Tenaj Thompson’s latest bail application after he stated that the defendant had multiple prior convictions of a similar nature.

As a result, Thompson will remain on remand at the Bahamas Department of Correctional Services until his trial begins.

Domek Rolle represented the accused.

JAILED FOR ALLOWING INFANT TO EAT MARIJUANA GUMMIES

By PAVEL BAILEY Tribune Staff Reporter pbailey@tribunemedia.net A FATHER choked up in court after being sentenced to six months in prison having admitted to allowing his infant daughter to eat his marijuana gummies last month.

Magistrate Kara Turnquest Deveaux charged

the 28-year-old man, whose name is being withheld to protect the identity of the child, with cruelty to children.

The defendant allowed his one-year-old daughter to consume one of his marijuana infused gummies sometime between January 1 and 25 while she was in his care.

After pleading guilty to

the charge, the defendant claimed that she only ate one of his gummies which he had lying around the house.

The defendant’s voice broke and tears began to flow as the Magistrate told him that he would serve six months at the Bahamas Department of Correctional Services for the offence.

BAIL GRANTED AFTER WOMAN ‘ATTACKED WITH CUTLASS’

By PAVEL BAILEY Tribune Staff Reporter pbailey@tribunemedia.net A MAN was granted bail on Friday after he allegedly assaulted a woman with a cutlass in December.

Magistrate Raquel

Whyms charged Bradley Hanchell, 56, with assault with a dangerous instrument.

Hanchell is alleged to have assaulted Charma Rolle with a cutlass on December 19, 2023 in New Providence.

Following his not guilty

plea, the defendant was granted $3,000 bail with one or two sureties.

Under the terms of his bail, he must sign in at the Carmichael Road Police Station every Thursday by 6pm.

Hanchell’s trial begins on April 23.

board during the time the vessel ran aground,” he said.

Mr Culmer noted that the vessel’s owners and operators have already approached salvors and tugs to assist in freeing the

cargo vessel.

“Efforts have already been made and are still ongoing to get the vessel off the sand bar,” he said.

“There is no threat to the environment in any form or fashion, and the vessel is

intact. It never made contact with any reefs in the immediate area.

Mr Culmer said there was no cargo onboard the disabled vessel and that another attempt to free it would be made at high tide.

MONDAY, FEBRUARY 12, 2024

THE STORIES BEHIND THE NEWS

A PROTESTER jumps on burning tires during a protest against Haitian Prime Minister Ariel Henry in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, on Monday, February 5.

By MALCOLM STRACHAN IN theory, Bahamian troops should be on the ground in Haiti by now.

Back in October, National Security Minister Wayne Munroe said that The Bahamas was “ready, willing and able to deploy” Royal Bahamas Defence Force marines, while Prime Minister Philip “Brave” Davis said the country would abide by the outcome of the UN resolution to deploy security troops.

Not through the fault of The Bahamas, however, things have hit a standstill.

Kenya was due to lead the mission – but a plan to deploy 1,000 Kenyan police officers has hit the legal buffers with a court ruling it was unlawful for police to be deployed outside Kenya’s borders.

With Mr Davis saying another country will pick up the mantle from Kenya to lead the mission – though he does not think that it should be a CARICOM country – it’s now a case of hurry up and wait. We’re ready to go, but going nowhere.

It was interesting in this light, then, to hear the – somewhat limited – words of former Prime Minister Perry Christie last week, who is one of three members of the CARICOM Eminent Persons Group tasked with trying to find a solution for the crisis that is devouring Haiti.

Let us quickly recap – the country is overrun by gangs, with large chunks of territory and resources under their control, without any remaining elected representatives, existing in the wake of the assassination of President Jovenel Moise and with murder, kidnappings and rape rife throughout the nation.

That is bad enough, but Mr Christie tells us that the conditions in Haiti are deteriorating significantly, and at a dangerous rate.

He said last week: “We in the Eminent Group have always chosen not to make public statements … the international community, clearly, CARICOM clearly, we all have an obligation to ensure that we do not let Haiti fall into a completely failed state. Enormous sacrifices are being made by families, and enormous damage is being done to children who are being displaced, people who are being raped and people

Torn apart by gangs, Haiti still waits for action as it teeters on edge of being a failed state

who’ve been killed. And so there is a call for action, and hopefully, that action will take place soon.

How perilous is the situation? Well, a report published in December by ex-Reuters correspondent Brian Ellsworth, highlighted some of the extent of the chaos in the country.

Some of what he wrote we know already – that gangs “have become so powerful in the past five years that they are disrupting basic activities and making elections impossible through constant turf war and violence against innocent civilians”.

He told a story of a Haitian pastor in the Canaan area where gangs were operating with impunity, and the pastor gave a sermon

encouraging violently confronting gangs. The pastor, Marcorel Zidor, led a march of hundreds of people into an area controlled by a gang.

The gang responded with gunfire. Machine guns were fired, killing seven people and wounding dozens of others. The pastor has since said he would do it again – but it shows the extent of the incredible frustration experienced by

the Haitian people, and the absolute disregard for life from the gangs they confront.

Vigilante attacks have soared as part of the Bwa Kale movement, fuelled at least in part by the paralysis of the courts in dealing with the tidal wave of criminality. Hospitals have been attacked, forcing the evacuation of patients and staff, including infants on oxygen.

An estimated 80 percent

‘The current Prime Minister, Ariel Henry, has no mandate for his position, the public has not voted him or his platform in.

In essence, he is what we’ve got, rather than who has been chosen.’

of Port-au-Prince is under gang control. The road going south is controlled by the G9 Alliance gang network. The road going north is controlled by the G-9 Pép coalition. Routes to the east are “the territory of the Kraze Barye gang and the 400 Mawozo,” notes Mr Ellsworth in his report.

In 2021, the 400 Mawozo made international headlines when kidnapping American and Canadian missionaries and holding them for two months.

In 2019, according to UN figures, there were 78 murders. From January to June last year, there were 1,014.

According to Mr Ellsworth’s report, security experts say the gangs have their routes in the feared Tonton Macoute police force created by Papa Doc

Photo: Odelyn Joseph/AP Duvalier – even though that group was disbanded in 1986, they were not disarmed and “continue to operate as vigilantes for hire”. In 1995, the army was disbanded, with some of the troops reportedly going on to create armed groups that became gangs.

If gang activity is the fire, then the poor economy is the fuel, with Haiti’s economy expected to shrink by 2.5 percent in the 2023 fiscal year after four consecutive years of contraction. The World Bank described that, saying: “Past gains in poverty reduction have been undone.”

What is the solution to all this? Well, the deployment of troops can only be part of it. As Ellsworth’s report notes, the administration of the country is in disarray, while the executive director of Haiti’s Natinoal Human Rights Defence Network (RNDDHH), Pierre Esperance, is quoted as saying: “We need to fix the political stability, we need to fix the absence of rule of law and governance. If the Kenya mission comes – tomorrow, next week, in two weeks, in one month – without fixing the governance problem, it will not work. It will be a cosmetic solution.”

And there lies the biggest challenge. Until elected representatives are running a government with the support of the people, any actions carried out by troops will be similar to firefighters simply keeping a fire contained rather than putting it out.

The current Prime Minister, Ariel Henry, has no mandate for his position, the public has not voted him or his platform in. In essence, he is what we’ve got, rather than who has been chosen.

If all this seems like a mess, it is. Mr Christie’s words, stating that we must not let Haiti become a completely failed state, are well chosen. The word completely tells us that worse lies ahead, but as for being a failed state, we are already practically there.

Emigration is increasing, and if we think here in The Bahamas that migration is an issue now, imagine how much more there will be from that completely failed state.

Our troops, we are told, stand ready to do their part.

But solutions look to be in short supply, and action does not seem to be happening any time soon.

INSIGHT

EMAIL: insight@tribunemedia.net

MONDAY, FEBRUARY 12, 2024 PAGE 11

This life and the next AT the start of a new year, it’s common practice as an adult to reflect on our lives. We assess our successes and failures throughout the preceding year and set goals for the near future. And every year, aside from wishing for more success, the hope ultimately is that we and our loved ones retain good health and even stronger relationships.

But in the dark of night, when the whispers of our mind are at their peak, there is an unchecked foreboding sense of dread as to what calamity the new year may bring. No amount of celebratory confetti or champagne can mask it. And while thoughts of those who didn’t make it to the new year may be short-lived, the knowledge that tragedy could either end or change the course of life in less time than it takes to drive a city block in rush hour traffic, haunts us.

A few weeks ago, early into the new year, one of my patients died suddenly. He was 50 years old with a history of diabetes but I, and everyone who knew him, imagined that he had many more years of life to enjoy. And yet, without warning, he was gone. He was being treated initially in the hospital for an infected wound.

The infection subsided but he died anyway. And now, his family has been castigated into the deepest dark. We can all easily relate to their grief as we accept in our own mind the fact that only a split-second separates life from death.

It saddens me that even while knowing this, so many people waste precious time being angry over trivialities. I ended my column last year talking about the importance of gratitude so it feels appropriate that I start this year off with the same sentiment. I am grateful that I had a chance to know this patient and hear stories about his life growing up on one of our Family Islands. Although it was not under my care that the end came, I am grateful that he chose me to be his doctor and flew to Nassau regularly for routine care. I’m grateful knowing that someone so loving and so kind was loved in return and that he left a legacy that can be so easily remembered in this life and the next.

There’s nothing that I or anyone else can say to ease the pain and sense of loss that my patient’s family now face. His parents, fiancée, children and grandchildren need time to heal but so does our wider community as pockets of families throughout our nation suffer through the loss of their loved ones due to either criminal acts, suicide or illness. The juxtaposition of living in paradise and not enjoying an idyllic life is difficult for foreigners to appreciate. Paradise or not, we have our challenges but focusing on the positive aspects of our lives can make navigating hard times all the more bearable.

In an in-office discussion with another patient some time back, I learned that she lost her husband of 50 years when he was traumatically injured in a car accident. Her world was shattered in an instant and it’s never been the same since. Now, in the twilight of her life, she’s had to traverse life without her soulmate and some days it’s still so crippling she doesn’t want to get out of bed. The life lesson that she learned over the years is to never sweat the small stuff because in the end, it simply doesn’t matter. She regrets that it took her a lifetime to figure that out.

In an effort to console her, I offered that it’s always better to learn a valuable lesson late, than to never learn it at all. Then I shared with her a story that I learned in college many years ago.

Alexander the Great is the former king of Macedonia who forged one of the greatest empires in history before dying at the age of 32. His net worth, adjusted to present-day would have been in the trillions (USD) making him one of the wealthiest men in history. Up until the age of 16, he was tutored by the ancient Greek philosopher Aristotle and was considered wise beyond his time.

As a reflection of his wisdom, it’s rumoured that before his death, he assembled his closest generals and laid bare his three wishes to be carried out after he died.

His first wish was that only physicians be allowed to carry his coffin because he wanted the world to see that even the best doctors on earth cannot save you from death. His second wish was the path to his grave be strewn with gold, silver and precious stones to show everyone that chasing wealth and power in the end amounts to nothing. Finally, he asked that his hands be left open and allowed to dangle outside of his coffin so that everyone can see that for all his wealth and power, he left the world as emptyhanded as he came into it.

Not long after this, Alexander the Great died and by all accounts, his three wishes were never performed and many scholars have chalked it up to folk legend rather than historical fact. Nonetheless, the lessons remain steadfast.

Leaving behind a lifetime of memories encased in laughter and love is the best gift my patient’s husband could have left her and for that I challenged her to hold on to the good times and dive into those memories whenever sadness encircles her heart.

To put preaching into practice, whenever I get angry, I’ve discovered that it’s worthwhile to stop and ask myself if I’d still care about whatever’s vexing me if it was my last day alive. If it doesn’t, then I let it go. Now ask yourself what would you want to do if it were your last day alive, what would you spend time being angry over and what regrets would you have?

At the start of the new year, perhaps asking you this will inspire the change you need to live a more grateful and fulfilled life or in the very least help you overcome a recent tragedy.

This year, as my column moves to a once-a-month format, I encourage readers to truly digest the lessons that my patients have shared about their lives and health experiences in hopes that it may in some small part reshape how you think about your own health and mortality. What I share with you is what I have learned from them.

My Family Island patient didn’t know that when he walked into the hospital at the start of the year, he would never walk back out. He didn’t know he would soon be eating his last meal, sending his last text message or hugging his family for the last time. But I pray that like him, we can learn to love life, be at peace with our decisions and live in gratitude at all times both in word and in deed, in public and in private. I am grateful for all my patients and I’m so happy that I got to really know this one, be a friend to him in this life and I solemnly pray that we’ll meet again in the next.

This is The KDK Report.

• Nicknamed ‘The Prince of Podiatry’, Dr Kenneth D Kemp is the founder and medical director of Bahamas Foot and Ankle located in Caves Village, Western New Providence. He served as the deputy chairman for the Health Council for five years and he currently sits on the board of directors for the Princess Margaret Hospital Foundation in his role as co-vice-chairman.

By DR KENNETH D KEMP

THE STATUE of Alexander the Great in Thessaloniki

PAGE 12 MONDAY, FEBRUARY 12, 2024

INSIGHT

EMAIL: insight@tribunemedia.net

ATLANTIC HEADED FOR A TIPPING POINT

By RENÉ VAN WESTEN Utrecht University SUPERSTORMS, abrupt climate shifts and New York City frozen in ice. That’s how the blockbuster Hollywood movie “The Day After Tomorrow” depicted an abrupt shutdown of the Atlantic Ocean’s circulation and the catastrophic consequences.

While Hollywood’s vision was over the top, the 2004 movie raised a serious question: If global warming shuts down the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation, which is crucial for carrying heat from the tropics to the northern latitudes, how abrupt and severe would the climate changes be?

Twenty years after the movie’s release, we know a lot more about the Atlantic Ocean’s circulation. Instruments deployed in the ocean starting in 2004 show that the Atlantic Ocean circulation has observably slowed over the past two decades, possibly to its weakest state in almost a millennium. Studies also suggest that the circulation has reached a dangerous tipping point in the past that sent it into a precipitous, unstoppable decline, and that it could hit that tipping point again as the planet warms and glaciers and ice sheets melt.

In a new study using the latest generation of Earth’s climate models, we simulated the flow of fresh water until the ocean circulation reached that tipping point.

The results showed that the circulation could fully shut down within a century of hitting the tipping point, and that it’s headed in that direction. If that happened, average temperatures would drop by several degrees in North America, parts of Asia and Europe, and people would see severe and cascading consequences around the world.

We also discovered a

THE MOVIE “The Day After Tomorrow” predicted the catastrophic consequences of a shutdown of the Atlantic Ocean’s circulation. physicsbased early warning signal that can alert the world when the Atlantic Ocean circulation is nearing its tipping point.

The ocean’s conveyor belt Ocean currents are driven by winds, tides and water density differences.

In the Atlantic Ocean circulation, the relatively warm and salty surface water near the equator flows toward Greenland.

During its journey it crosses the Caribbean Sea, loops up into the Gulf of Mexico, and then flows along the US East Coast before crossing the Atlantic.

This current, also known as the Gulf Stream, brings heat to Europe. As it flows northward and cools, the water mass becomes heavier. By the time it reaches Greenland, it starts to sink and flow southward.

The sinking of water near

Greenland pulls water from elsewhere in the Atlantic Ocean and the cycle repeats, like a conveyor belt.

Too much fresh water from melting glaciers and the Greenland ice sheet can dilute the saltiness of the water, preventing it from sinking, and weaken this ocean conveyor belt. A weaker conveyor belt transports less heat northward and also enables less heavy water to reach Greenland, which further weakens the conveyor belt’s strength.

Once it reaches the tipping point, it shuts down quickly.

What happens to the climate at the tipping point?

The existence of a tipping point was first noticed in an overly simplified model of the Atlantic Ocean circulation in the early 1960s.

Today’s more detailed climate models indicate a continued slowing of the

conveyor belt’s strength under climate change. However, an abrupt shutdown of the Atlantic Ocean circulation appeared to be absent in these climate models.

This is where our study comes in. We performed an experiment with a detailed climate model to find the tipping point for an abrupt shutdown by slowly increasing the input of fresh water.

We found that once it reaches the tipping point, the conveyor belt shuts down within 100 years. The heat transport toward the north is strongly reduced, leading to abrupt climate shifts.

The result: Dangerous cold in the North Regions that are influenced by the Gulf Stream receive substantially less heat when the circulation stops. This cools the North American and European continents by a few degrees.

The European climate is much more influenced by the Gulf Stream than other regions. In our experiment, that meant parts of the continent changed at more than 5 degrees Fahrenheit (3 degrees Celsius) per decade – far faster than today’s global warming of about 0.36 F (0.2 C) per decade. We found that parts of Norway would experience temperature drops of more than 36 F (20 C).

On the other hand, regions in the Southern Hemisphere would warm by a few degrees.

These temperature changes develop over about 100 years. That might seem like a long time, but on typical climate time scales, it is abrupt.

The conveyor belt shutting down would also affect sea level and precipitation patterns, which can push other ecosystems closer to their tipping points. For example, the Amazon rainforest is vulnerable to declining precipitation. If its forest ecosystem turned to grassland, the transition would release carbon to the atmosphere and result in the loss of a valuable carbon sink, further accelerating climate change.

The Atlantic circulation has slowed significantly in the distant past. During glacial periods when ice sheets that covered large parts of the planet were melting, the influx of fresh water slowed the Atlantic circulation, triggering huge climate fluctuations.

So, when will we see this tipping point?

The big question – when will the Atlantic circulation reach a tipping point – remains unanswered.

Observations don’t go back far enough to provide a clear result. While a

recent study suggested that the conveyor belt is rapidly approaching its tipping point, possibly within a few years, these statistical analyses made several assumptions that give rise to uncertainty.

Instead, we were able to develop a physics-based and observable early warning signal involving the salinity transport at the southern boundary of the Atlantic Ocean.

Once a threshold is reached, the tipping point is likely to follow in one to four decades.

The climate impacts from our study underline the severity of such an abrupt conveyor belt collapse.

The temperature, sea level and precipitation changes will severely affect society, and the climate shifts are unstoppable on human time scales.

It might seem counterintuitive to worry about extreme cold as the planet warms, but if the main Atlantic Ocean circulation shuts down from too much meltwater pouring in, that’s the risk ahead.

This article was updated to Feb. 11, 2024, to fix a typo: The experiment found temperatures in parts of Europe changed by more than 5 F per decade.

• Originally published on www.theconversation.com

THE TRIBUNE

USHER SHINES AT HALFTIME SHOW LOS ANGELES Associated Press USHER emerged at Las Vegas’ Allegiant Stadium for the 2024 Super Bowl halftime show seated on a throne, joined by a marching band and a trove of Vegas performers — but stayed its centre.

It was an immediate confirmation of his position as the ideal halftime performer: one with timeless, well-known hits, masterful choreography, and a devoted audience.

He started with “Caught Up,” moving into “U Don’t Have to Call,” Superstar,” and “Love in the Club.”

Then Alicia Keys joined in front of bright red piano for her song “If I Ain’t Got You,” which morphed into “My Boo,” Usher losing a glove in an apparent tribute to Michael Jackson — notable for a performance during Black History Month.

“They said I wouldn’t make it,” he told the crowd,

dedicating the set to his “mama.”

Across 13 minutes during the halftime show sponsored by Apple Music, Usher brought out a number of guests including H.E.R., Jermaine Dupri, Lil Jon (for “Turn Down for What,” which became “Yeah!” — and included a guest appearance from Ludacris).

Across three decades, the R&B superstar had an endless treasure trove of hits to pull from — and did so with costume changes, and a rolling performance of “OMG” while wearing roller skates.

His album “Confessions” ranks among one of the best-selling music projects of all time and turned 20 this year; “Burn” became an easy performance highlight.

Over the past two years, Usher, 45, has made Vegas a home for his unique talents, with his sold-out residency, “Usher: My Way,” at Dolby Live at Park MGM making

Monday, February 12, 2024, PAGE 13

him the perfect pick for Sunday’s game.

The eight-time Grammy award winner is also no stranger to the Super Bowl stage — he made a guest appearance with Black Eyed Peas frontman will.i.am in 2011.

“I got a chance to see a bit of what it felt like,” Usher told The Associated Press in a recent interview.

In his first Super Bowl performance, he descended from the stadium ceiling to perform “OMG” in Arlington, Texas.

“Don’t take the moments for granted because you only get 13 of them,” he said in advance of his 2024 performance, referring to the usually allotted 13-minute run time. “The hardest part is trying to figure out how to squeeze it all in when you actually have a large catalog, or a lot of records people celebrate and love.”

With a doubt — he figured out exactly how to do just that.

ALICIA Keys and Usher perform during halftime of the NFL Super Bowl 58 football game between the San Francisco 49ers and the Kansas City Chiefs yesterday.

Photo: Frank Franklin II/AP

USHER performs during halftime of the NFL Super Bowl in Las Vegas.

Photo: David Becker/AP

PAGE 14, Monday, February 12, 2024

THE TRIBUNE

Allies fear US becoming less reliable with concern over return of Trump

US President Joe Biden walks with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in Kyiv, Ukraine, in February last year.

Photos: Evan Vucci/AP

LONDON Associated Press AS CHANCES rise of a Joe Biden-Donald Trump rematch in the US presidential election, America’s allies are bracing for a bumpy ride.

Many worry that a second term for Trump would be an earthquake, but tremors already abound — and concerns are rising that the US could grow less dependable regardless of who wins. With a divided electorate and gridlock in Congress, the next American president could easily become consumed by manifold challenges at home — before even beginning to address flashpoints around the world, from Ukraine to the Middle East.

French President Emmanuel Macron’s recent verdict was blunt: America’s “first priority is itself”.

The first Trump administration stress-tested the bonds between the US and its allies, particularly in Europe. Trump derided the leaders of some friendly nations, including Germany’s Angela Merkel and Britain’s Theresa May, while praising authoritarians such as Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Russian leader Vladimir Putin.

He has called China’s Xi Jinping “brilliant” and Hungary’s Viktor Orbán “a great leader”.

In campaign speeches, Trump remains skeptical of organisations such as NATO, often lamenting the billions the US spends on the military alliance whose support has been critical to Ukraine’s fight against Russia’s invasion.

He said at a rally on Saturday that, as president, he’d warned NATO allies he would encourage Russia “to do whatever the hell they want” to countries that didn’t pay their way in the alliance. Trump also wrote on his social media network that in future the US should end all foreign aid donations and replace them with loans.

NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg warned that Trump risked endangering US troops and their allies. “Any suggestion

THEN-US President Donald Trump shakes hands with then-German Chancellor Angela Merkel during a NATO summit in England in 2019. that allies will not defend each other undermines all of our security, including that of the US, and puts American and European soldiers at increased risk,” he said in a statement on Sunday.

Biden, meanwhile, has made support for Ukraine a key priority and moral imperative. But Biden’s assertion after his election in 2020 that “America is back” on the global stage has not been entirely borne out. Congressional Republicans have stalled more military aid for Ukraine, while America’s influence has been unable to contain conflict in the Middle East Thomas Gift, director of the Centre on US Politics at University College London, said that whoever wins the presidential race, the direction of travel will be the same – toward a multipolar planet in which the United States is no longer “the indisputable world superpower”.

Most allied leaders refrain from commenting directly on the US election, sticking to the line that it’s for Americans to pick their leader.

They are conscious that they will have to work with the eventual winner, whoever it is — and behind the scenes, governments will be doing the “backroom work”

of quietly establishing links with the contenders’ political teams, said Richard Dalton, a former senior British diplomat.

But many of America’s European NATO allies are worried that with or without Trump, the US is becoming less reliable.

Some have started to talk openly about the need for members to ramp up military spending, and to plan for an alliance without the United States.

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said he was “currently on the phone a lot with my colleagues and asking them to do more” to support Ukraine. Germany is the second-largest donor of military aid to Kyiv, behind the US, but Scholz recently told German weekly Die Zeit that the country couldn’t fill any gap on its own if “the USA ceased to be a supporter”.

Trump’s comments on Saturday about NATO rang alarm bells in Poland, which shares a border with Ukraine. “We have a hot war at our border,” Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk said on Sunday.

He warned: “We must realise that the EU cannot be an economic and civilisational giant and a dwarf when it comes to defence, because the world has changed.”

Russia, meanwhile, is busy bolstering ties with China, Iran and North Korea and trying to chip away at Ukraine’s international support.

Macron also suggested American attention was focused far from Europe. If Washington’s top priority is the US, he said its second is China.

“This is also why I want a stronger Europe, that knows how to protect itself and isn’t dependent on others,” Macron said at a January news conference.

Trump does have supporters in Europe, notably pro-Russia populists such as Hungary’s Orbán. But former British Prime Minister Boris Johnson raised some eyebrows when he argued recently that “a Trump presidency could be just what the world needs”.

Johnson is a strong supporter of Ukraine in its struggle against Russian invasion, whereas Trump has frequently praised Putin and said he’d end the war within 24 hours.

However, Johnson said in a Daily Mail column that he didn’t believe Trump would “ditch the Ukrainians”, but instead would help Ukraine win the war, leaving the West stronger “and the world more stable”.

Bronwen Maddox, director of the international

affairs think tank Chatham House, said arguments like that underestimate “how destabilising” Trump has been, and likely would continue to be if reelected.

“For those who say his first term did not do much damage to international order, one answer is that he took the US out of the JCPOA, the deal to curb Iran’s nuclear program.

Iran’s acceleration of its work since then has left it a threshold nuclear weapon state,” she said during a recent speech on the year ahead.

Biden was a critic of Trump’s Iran policy but hasn’t managed to rebuild bridges with Tehran, which continues to flex its muscles across the region.

Dalton, a former UK ambassador to Iran, said prospects for the Middle East would be “slightly worse” under Trump than Biden. But he said divergence on the region’s main tensions — the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and Iran’s ambitions — would be limited.

“No US administration is going to make a serious effort to resolve differences with Iran through diplomacy,” Dalton told The Associated Press. “That ship sailed quite some time ago.”

Palestinians and their

supporters, meanwhile, implore Biden to temper US support for Israel as the civilian death toll from the war in Gaza climbs. But hard-liners in Israel argue the US is already restraining the offensive against Hamas too much.

Itamar Ben-Gvir, Israel’s far-right national security minister, recently said Biden was not giving Israel his “full backing” and that “if Trump was in power, the US conduct would be completely different”.

Much like its allies, America’s rivals are not openly expressing a preference for the election outcome.

Trump developed a strong rapport with Turkey’s Erdogan, calling them “very good friends” during a 2019 meeting at the White House.

Yet Turkey-US relations were fraught during his tenure. The Trump administration removed Turkey from its F-35 fighter jet project over Ankara’s decision to purchase Russian-made missile defense systems, while Trump himself threatened to ruin Turkey’s economy.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov told CBS in January that he doesn’t “believe there will be any difference” between a Trump and a Biden presidency. He argued that Russia-US relations have been going downhill since George W Bush’s administration.

China, where leaders’ initial warmth toward Trump soured into tit-for-tat tariffs and rising tensions, little changed under Biden, who continued his predecessor’s tough stance toward the United States’ strategic rival.

Zhao Minghao, a professor of international relations at Fudan University in Shanghai, said that for China, the two candidates were like “two ‘bowls of poison’.”

Gift, from University College London, said the move to a more fractured world is “going to happen regardless of whether Donald Trump or Joe Biden is elected”.

“It’s just sort of a reality,” he said.

WOMAN FIRING RIFLE AT JOEL OSTEEN’S CHURCH KILLED BY OFF-DUTY OFFICERS HOUSTON Associated Press A WOMAN in a trenchoat entered the Houston megachurch of celebrity pastor Joel Osteen and started shooting Sunday afternoon and was killed by two off-duty officers working security, police said. They added a young child with the woman was critically hurt and another man nearby was wounded.

Houston Police Chief

Troy Finner said the woman entered the church with a long gun and a backpack shortly before 2pm on Sunday, accompanied by a child about four or five years old. He said the child was in critical condition after being taken to a hospital.

The shooting happened between services at the megachurch that is regularly attended by 45,000 people every week, making it the third largest megachurch

in the US, according to the Hartford Institute for Religion Research. Osteen’s televised sermons reach about 100 countries.

Texas Governor Greg Abbott said “our hearts are with those impacted by today’s tragic shooting and the entire Lakewood Church community in Houston. Places of worship are sacred.”

“She had a long gun, and it could have been a lot worse,” Finner said at the

news conference.

Osteen said the shooting could have been much worse if it had happened during the larger 11am service.

“We’re devastated,” he said, adding he would pray for the victims and their families.

Worshippers could be seen leaving the building as authorities evacuated the church, and authorities said they were continuing to methodically search the

building as a precaution.

Earlier, Lakewood Church posted on X, formerly known as Twitter, shortly afterrward that there was an “active situation involving shots fired” at the church.

Witnesses told reporters that they heard multiple gunshots about the time the church’s 2pm Spanish language service was set to begin.

Christina Rodriguez, who was inside the church, told

Houston television station KTRK that she “started screaming, ‘There’s a shooter, there’s a shooter,’” and then she and others ran to the backside of a library inside the building, then stood in a stairway before they were told it was safe to leave.

People stood outside the building as authorities evacuated the church. Officials later announced a reunification centre had been set up at a nearby gym for people to find their loved ones.

SPORTS PAGE 15

MONDAY, FEBRUARY 12, 2024

Super Bowl 58, Page 18

ON TOP OF THE WORLD: Devynne Charlton proudly displays the Bahamian flag yesterday after setting the world indoor record in the 60 metre hurdles at the Millrose Games in New York.

WORLD RECORD

By BRENT STUBBS Senor Sports Reporter bstubbs@tribunemedia.net

D

evynne Charlton got the start she expected and the finish anticipated in what she called the “perfect race” as she powered to a world indoor record in the women’s 60 metres hurdles yesterday at the Millrose Games.

Competing against a stacked field that she could face next month at the World Indoor Championships in Glasgow, Scotland, Charlton led from start to finish, running a sizzling time of 7.67 seconds at the World Athletics Indoor Tour Gold meeting in New York.

Charlton erased the previous world indoor record of 7.68 that was set by Susanna Kallur exactly 26 years and one day, dating back to 2008 in Karlsruhe, Germany in 2008 as she also shattered her own Bahamian national record of 7.75. “I really can’t even say.

All I was thinking about was executing the start,”

WORLD record holder Devynne Charlton is flanked by her parents Laura and Dave Charlton.

Charlton told the media in an interview after the event.

“I did that. I knew I crossed the line first. I was anticipating the time. I thought

I heard them say ‘world record.’ I couldn’t hear it.

But everybody sounded so excited, everybody started to embrace me and was

jumping up and down. I thought I must have done something special. But it didn’t hit me until they brought me around to the

IT was another indoor national record-breaking performance for pole vaulter Brenden Vanderpool as he duplicated the same feat at the same venue he established the previous mark last month.

Vanderpool, 18, improved his new mark at the Samford Open at the Birmingham Metro CrossPlex in Birmingham, Alabama, as he led a field of elite and collegiate athletes competing in various meets around the US on Friday and Saturday, including the world record feat by hurdler Devynne Charlton and the outstanding performances from college athletes Terrence Jones and Javonya Valcourt and elite sprinter

By TENAJH SWEETING Tribune Sports Reporter tsweeting@tribunemedia.net

Anthonique Strachan and long jumper LaQuan Nairn.

The Samford University freshman soared 17-feet, 10 1/2-inches or 5.45 metres to win the men’s pole vault, which qualified him for the NCAA Division II Indoor Nationals in Boston in March.

He is also listed as the number one freshman in the nation in the event.

“I feel like I’ve been expecting in the back of my head that I would jump close to this high this year, but I didn’t have any clues that it would come so early in the season,” Vanderpool said. “But it feels good.”

During the competition, Vanderpool opened with 15-11 3/4 (4.87m) and he went to 16-7 1/2 (5.07m) and then 17-0 1/2 (5.20m),

SEE PAGE 17

SEE PAGE 19

ROADRUNNERS: MORE ATHLETES QUALIFY FOR THE CARIFTA GAMES

VANDERPOOL BREAKS HIS INDOOR NATIONAL RECORD IN POLE VAULT

By BRENT STUBBS Senor Sports Reporter bstubbs@tribunemedia.net

clock and I saw my name and the world record and I saw the time. That’s when it hit me. But I couldn’t describe the race if I tried.”

With her parents Laura and Dave Charlton in the stands cheering for their 28-year-old daughter, Charlton beat Jamaican Danielle Williams to the first of five flights of hurdles.

As she accelerated through the race, Charlton had surged ahead and maintained the lead as Williams trailed her through the finish line in second in 7.78, while American Tia Jones had to settle for third in a photo finish.

Another Jamaican Ackera Nugent was fourth in a season’s best of 7.80.

Fifth went to Great Britain’s Cindy Sember in 7.91 with American Nia Ali sixth in 7.95.

Jamaican Megan Tapper was seventh in a personal best of 7.98 and Americans Sharika Nelvis and Alessa Samuel rounded out the field in eighth and ninth in 8.05 and a personal best of 8.26 respectively.

After she was the last woman sitting outside of the medal chart at the World Outdoor Championships last August, Charlton

BRENDEN Vanderpool displaying his new national indoor pole vault record.

THE Roadrunners’ Diana Lynn Thompson Classic saw more athletes on the track and field attain the CARIFTA qualifying standards on Saturday at the original Thomas A Robinson Stadium.

Alexis Roberts, of RedLine Athletics, clocked 56.35 in the under 17 girls’ 400m finals to qualify for her first time.

She landed right on the qualification mark of 56.35.

Placing second was Jasmine Thompson with 59.32 and Red-Line Athletics’ Azarria Marshall finished third.

Roberts expressed how it felt to qualify for her very first time.

“It feels really good. I went on the track wishing that I could do my best and

I wanted to leave this track knowing that I left everything out there and that I did my best,” she said.

Her performance in the event was exactly the plan coaches wanted her to execute and with the CARIFTA Trials right around the corner, she is hoping to shave down her time.

“It was good. I followed the race plan my coach gave me. I got out fast and I finished strong. I am looking forward to cutting down my time to run 55 seconds and I am just hoping to make the team,” she said.

Roberts’ fellow teammate Madison Moss dipped under the CARIFA mark of 14.65 with her time of 14.48 in the under 17 girls’ 100m hurdles.

Davon Davis, son of GSSSA president Varel Davis, also managed to

SEE PAGE 16

PAGE 16, Monday, February 12, 2024

THE TRIBUNE HAPPY BIRTHDAY: Rev. Dr. William Thompson is flanked by players, officials and coaches on Saturday during a sports fun day at the Baillou Hills Sporting Complex to help celebrate his 80th birthday.

Photo: Moise Amisial

ROADRUNNERS: MORE ATHLETES QUALIFY FOR CARIFTA GAMES FROM PAGE 15

A birthday bash to remember

By BRENT STUBBS Senior Sports Reporter bstubbs@tribunemedia.net IT was a birthday celebration, highlighted by a pair of Masters Softball League games and entertainment that included rake-n-scrape, marching bands and a junkanoo rush-out, that left the Rev. Dr. William Thompson flabbergasted.

Saturday’s sports fun day at the Baillou Hills Sporting Complex to help commemorate his 80th birthday turned out to be a little more than Rev Dr Thompson anticipated.

“This has been a tremendous blessing to me today.

I truly thought when the team told me they were having this and they were going to invite all of the former athletes to come and have two competitive games going on, I had no idea this would have been so tremendous in terms of the support,” he said.

“It’s really been a blessing and a joyful day for me.”

Looking at the performances in the games, Rev. Dr. Thompson said he felt he may have stopped playing at such a younger age because he felt the urge to go out on the field and play again.

But Minister of Youth, Sports and Culture Mario Bowleg, who stood by his side in the VIP lounge, said he considered Rev. Dr. Thompson to be more of a spiritual father to him and he made sure and mentored and guided him when he started his political career.

“He was a gentleman who impacted many young people, whether it was through junkanoo or playing sports or through religion, so it’s no better way to celebrate 80 years of life here on earth,” Bowleg said.

“So whether he celebrates it through sports, an all-day fun day, with the junkanoo celebrations, everything they are doing to help him celebrate his 80th birthday is being done in the way he wanted to be done.”

Making a special appearance for the event was Prime Minister Philip “Brave” Davis. He noted that Rev. Dr. Thompson made a profound impact on his life and he just wanted to express his gratitude.

“He was my first baseball coach. I played for his junior league baseball team as the shortstop,” Davis said.

“He taught me how to hold the gloves and to throw the ball. Since then, he has been in my life and so I had to come and show my face.”

In one of the two games played, Da Boys nipped the Corner Boyz 19-18 as Sidney Thomas got the win on the mound over Vernon Clarke, who was tagged with the loss.

REV. Dr. William Thompson is flanked by players and officials of the Masters Softball League game beween the Divers and the Scorpions at the Baillou Hills Sporting Complex.

REV. Dr. William Thompson poses with the Eva Hilton Rake-n-Scrape band after their performance on Saturday.

Marcellus Hall had a big day, going 4-for-4 with five RBI and two runs scored, Dwayne Taylor was 3-for-4 with two RBI and four runs scored, Julian Pratt went 2-for-4 with three RBI and a run scored and John Lockhart was 2-for-5 with a RBI and three runs scored.

Martin ‘Pork’ Burrows, who not only played but was one of the committee members, said it was good for them to pull off the win because they had some new players who filled in for some of the starters, who weren’t able to make it.

“This is our second game, we’re now 2-0, so it’s a good start for us,” Burrows said.

“We look good. We feel confident about the rest of the season.”

As for the birthday celebrations for Thompson, Burrows said it was good to get the win for him, considering the fact that he coached him and some of the other players with the Tom McDiggers baseball team.

In the loss, Andy Percentie went 4-for-5 with a RBI and two runs scored, Godfrey Willie was 2-for-5 with a RBI and two runs scored, Chuckie Wilkinson was 2-for-2 with three RBI and three runs scored, Vernon Clarke went 2-for-4 with two RBI and a run scored and Leron Burrows was 3-for-4 with a RBI and three runs scored.

Marvin ‘Tougie’ Wood, coach of the Corner Boyz, admitted that they were flat.

“We could have played better than we did,” he stated. “We made some simple errors in the outfield, but we will be back.

Wood, however, commended the organising committee for

showcasing the teams in the celebrations.

“It was a great event.

Rev. Dr. Thompson had done a lot for sports and for Baptists in general,” he said. “It was excellent. Hopefully they can do something again next year.”

In the first game played, the Quality Home Center Divers outslugged the Scorpions as Don Dean got the win and Foster Dorsett was tagged with the loss.

Designated player and coach Robert Cox went 3-for-4 with five runs batted in (RBI) and three runs scored, Jayson Clarke was 3-for-4 with three RBI and two runs scored, Pat Lockhart was 3-for-4 with two RBI and a run scored and Kervin Culmer and Todd Isaacs Sr were both 2-for-with two RBI apiece.

Isaacs also scored a run.

“We were a little sluggish because it was our first game for the season, but we eventually made a strong effort in the last couple of innings and we were able to pull it off,” Cox said.

Cox noted that they gladly accepted the invitation to play as they gave leaders like Rev. Dr. Thompson his “flowers while he’s alive.”

Cox said it’s always good to give the leaders their flowers while they are alive.

Dorsett, Brian Harvey and Greg Burrows all went 2-for-4 in a losing effort.

Dorsett added two RBI with two runs scored, while Harvey scored twice and Burrows drove in two RBI. “We didn’t perform the way we should have and could have,” Dorsett said.

“We had one or two players missing, but that’s the game.

“We come to play, so we can’t blame no one else.

The guys tried. We had some fun.”

Dorsett said they were just happy to play for Rev. Dr. William Thompson, whom he called an icon in sports, junkanoo and religion.

The Eva Hilton Raken-Scrape band, which has been in formation for the past 11 years under the direction of physical education teacher/coach Zindora Munnings, kicked off the entertainment segment.

“It’s a privilege to be here to celebrate along with Rev. Dr. Thompson on his milestone,” Munnings said.

“Like he told us, he doesn’t feel 80, so it’s definitely a pleasure for our young people to experience the games and also to participate in these grand celebrations for him.”

James Hutchinson, the director of music at the Bahamas Correctional Institution, said they are happy to be able to honour Rev. Dr. Thompson, who serves as their chaplain.

“We wanted to show him some love, sorry it wasn’t long enough,” Hutchinson said. “But if he calls on us to do it again, we will do it again. He’s 80, but he looks like a 50-year-old man. So we’re happy to do this to honour him.”

The entertainment came to a close with a junkanoo rush-out by the Valley Boys, the group that Rev. Dr. Thompson is closely associated as a member.

One of his daughters, Bernadette Bastian, who organised the Sports Day, was more than overwhelmed by the turnout for her father.

“Overall, I think the event was a very good success and Rev. Thompson was very pleased with the celebrations here today,”

she pointed out. “This kicks off a week of celebrations and we have some good things to look forward to. So we couldn’t ask for a better start.”

Even the vendors were delighted to be a part of the event.

Antoinette Glinton, whose booth was the Batter Girls, said it went beyond their expectations.

“It started off very slow this morning, but by the afternoon, everything started to pick up and customers were just purchasing our stuff, so we had a good day,” she said.

“The atmosphere was good, the weather was good, the entertainment was good, so we had a good day.”

Zhane McPhee, who operated the Williams Wings & Fries, couldn’t agree more. “This was my first event and it was awesome,” she summed up.

“The turnout was tremendous. It was worthwhile and yes I would do it again if it happens again.”

The celebrations will climax with a big banquet to be held on Friday at the Atlantis resort. Tickets are priced at $250 per person.

And on his birthday on Sunday, February 18, there will be a grand celebration at Faith United Missionary Baptist Church where lunch will be served to everyone present.

“God has been good to him. He’s preached in every continent of the world, he has deserved in many capacities in this country, so we thought it would be nice to celebrate with him,” he said.

“We don’t know how God will keep him here, but since he’s celebrating his 80th birthday, we thought it was a good time to celebrate him.”

qualify for the first time in the under 17 boys’ triple jump event. The CARIFTA mark is 12.92m and Davis notched 13.95m in the event. Dishon Dean, of One Track Mind, came second with a qualifying jump of 13.18m and Abraham Forbes ended the event in third.

Davis, who is coming off an injury, was happy to qualify.

“It feels great because I was off for six weeks because of an injury and I came back and made a huge PR and qualified so it feels great,” he said.

He is hoping to clear 14m going forward and wants to come first at the CARIFTA Trials to potentially make the team.

Lanaisha Lubin, who was a part of last year’s CARIFTA team, qualified in the under 20 girls’ long jump.

She surpassed the qualifying standard of 5.58m with her jump of 5.70m. She took second place in the triple jump event with a height of 11.73m.

For Lubin, the result was not surprising to her but she acknowledged there is room to improve.

“I am very excited but I expected to qualify again.

I wanted to open up my season with a bit further jump but I am satisfied for the most part. I am really just gonna focus and buckle down on what I need to execute for jumps in the future,” she said.

She is hoping to work on her knee drive and extension while also getting over her fear of scratching in the event.

William McKinney soared to a CARIFTA qualification in the under 20 boys’ triple jump. He finished with a height of 14.89m, beating the CARIFTA mark of 14.29m.

Rollie Hanna, of Jumpers Inc., took second place with 14.08m.

Robert Deal III put on a qualifying performance in the under 20 boys’ discus throw. He bested the CARIFTA mark of 49.79m with his heave of 51.15m in the event.

Kaden Cartwright, of Air Assaults, was positioned second with a throwing distance of 45.63m. Jared Cox, who competed unattached, wrapped up third with 38.75m.

Deal took home another first-place finish in the men’s shot put.

Moving on to the javelin event, Ethan North, of Fast Forward, turned in a throw of 46.35m well over the CARIFTA standard of 44.95m.

Dior-Rae Scott and Taysha Stubbs, representing Air Assaults, along with Noble Prep’s Vanessa Sawyer, were all repeat qualifiers in the under 20 girls’ javelin throw. Sawyer improved on last week’s distance of 39.84m with 40.00m.

Cailyn Johnson, of Triple Threat Throws, and Blue Chip Athletics’ Annae Mackey qualified again in the under 20 girls’ discus throw.

Kenny Moxey Jr and Anaiah Rolle both repeated as qualifiers in the under 20 girls’ and boys’ pole vault respectively.

Next up for track and field will be the GSSSA High School Championships set for February 28 to March 1.

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THE TRIBUNE

Monday, February 12, 2024, PAGE 17

‘Buddy’ Hield scores 23 for 76ers in 119-113 win over Wizards

By IAN NICHOLAS QUILLEN Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — Tyrese Maxey scored 28 points, Chavano “Buddy” Hield added 23 in his second game with Philadelphia and the 76ers snapped a four-game losing streak with a 119-113 victory over the Washington Wizards on Saturday night.

On Saturday, rookie Ricky Council IV added 19 points and 10 rebounds for the Sixers in their sixth consecutive game without seven-time All-Star Joel Embiid, who underwent left knee surgery on Tuesday.

“He was big time,” Maxey said of Council’s 11th NBA appearance and first of more than 12 minutes.

“He balled. Defensively, offensively, energy-wise. He

got some big buckets down the stretch. I’m proud of him.”

Maxey also had nine rebounds and seven assists in his return after missing Friday’s loss against Atlanta with an illness. Hield — who was traded from Indiana in a three-team deal completed Thursday — had 20 points in his Philadelphia debut on Friday, marking the first time he’s surpassed 20 in consecutive games since November 21 and 22. “It’s just hard to guard when there’s speed on the ball and shooting, and shooting off the ball,” said Sixers coach Nick Nurse of the Maxey-Hield combination.

Philadelphia outrebounded Washington 48-39 and came up with three key late offensive boards — two from Council — to make the difference

PHILADELPHIA 76ers guard Buddy Hield (17), also top right, drives to the basket against Wizards guard Tyus Jones (5) during the second half on Saturday in Washington.

(AP Photo/Nick Wass during a tightly contested it’s pretty simple. Just play fourth quarter. The effort hard and be yourself.” helped the fifth-place Sixers Tyus Jones scored a searemain two games in front son-high 25 points and sank of Indiana in the Eastern a career-best six 3-pointConference. “It’s unreal ers for the Wizards, who right now,” Council said. lost their sixth straight and “But once you out there, sank to 2-7 under interim

coach Brian Keefe. Deni Avdija added 21 points and 13 rebounds and Kyle Kuzma scored 21 points for Washington, which never led after the first quarter, but closed what had been a 15-point deficit to two following an 11-2 run early in the fourth.

The Sixers responded with a pair of key putbacks, with Kelly Oubre Jr. following his own shot from the right corner and dunking in traffic before Council added another follow of his effort in the paint to stretch it to 104-98.

Philadelphia kept their lead at least two possessions from there.

Council dropped in another layup after outmuscling Jordan Poole for a rebound to extend it to 115109 inside the final minute, then sank two late free throws to seal it.

DEANDRE AYTON HAS DOUBLE DOUBLE - 18 POINTS AND 17 REBOUNDS - IN 93-84 LOSS TO PELICANS PORTLAND, Oregon (AP) — Trey Murphy III scored 24 points and the New Orleans Pelicans held off the Portland Trail Blazers 93-84 on Saturday night for their fifth victory in six games.

Brandon Ingram added 17 points, nine assists and five rebounds, and Jonas Valanciunas had 16 points and nine rebounds to help New Orleans rebound from a loss at the Los Angeles Lakers on Friday night. The Pelicans were without Zion Williamson because of a bruised left foot. “(Murphy) looked like himself tonight,” Pelicans coach Willie Green said.

“He was sound defensively, contesting shots, rebounding the ball. It was good to see Trey make shots. That’s what he’s capable of doing.

It makes it extremely difficult for any opponent.”

Jerami Grant led Portland with 24 points, and

Deandre Ayton had 18 points and 17 rebounds.

Dalano Banton scored 12 points in his first game with the Trail Blazers after coming over from Boston at the trade deadline.

Portland was without starting guards Anfernee Simons (ankle) and Malcolm Brogdon (illness), as well as rookie guard Scoot Henderson (foot).

New Orleans led by 13 points and held off a thirdquarter Portland comeback.

New Orleans shot 47.4%, while Portland shot 43.7% and made only 6 of 21 3-pointers.

“I thought our defence was incredible the whole game,” Trail Blazers coach Chauncey Billups said.

“Our defence was lightsout. That’s one of the better offensive teams in the league, and we held them to 93 points. We just weren’t able to manufacture points.”

NEW Orleans Pelicans forward Brandon Ingram, left, drives to the basket against Portland Trail Blazers centre Deandre Ayton during the second half on Saturday.

(AP Photo/Steve Dykes)

BRENDEN VANDERPOOL BREAKS HIS INDOOR NATIONAL RECORD IN POLE VAULT FROM PAGE 15 which was his previous best. As the last man left in the competition, he took the bar to 17-7 1/2 (5.30m).

“After I cleared it, I felt I still had a lot of height, so my coach told me I might as well keep going,” Vanderpool said. “He told me to go to 5.45m and I said of course.

“I missed the first two attempts, but sometime I grazed the bar on my third attempt and since it didn’t drop, I leapt out of the bed.

That was the best jump I ever had. Everything just connected perfectly. I shook the bar a little, but it stayed up there. I’m ecstatic.”

With his parents, Monique and Brent Vanderpool, among the crowd cheering him on, the Bahamian national outdoor and CARIFTA Games record holder said he attempted 18-0 1/2 (5.50m), but admitted that he just didn’t have the legs to continue.

After the performance, he said the only thing he wanted to do was eat and go to bed because he was really tired from all of the excitement.

“I just need some rest,” he said.

As he continues the rest of the season, Vanderpool admitted that the sky is the limit because he doesn’t have a mark to attempt anymore. He said he will just leave it open as he works on his technique to get better at his clearances.

“I did not do this alone.

I want to thank God, my parents, my coaches and team-mates and all of the rest of my family and friends,” he stated. “They

all encouraged me to go out there and do my best.”

Jones sizzles At the Jervis Scott Open at the Texas Tech-Sports Performance Center in Lubbock, Texas, Grand Bahamian native and Texas Tech’s junior Terrence Jones pulled off the men’s 60m victory in 6.47.

His sophomore teammate and hurdler Antoine Andrews was fourth in 6.58.

Jones and Andrews had the third and fourth fastest qualifying times of 6.54 and 6.69 respectively. Jaron Dean, a senior at the University of Texas at El Paso (UTEP), was 20th in 6.80.

Strachan and Nairn surged At the Tyson Invitational in Fayetteville, Arkansas, Strachan and Nairn, who are preparing for the World Indoor Championships in Glasgow, Scotland, led the way.

Strachan, who currently trains in Jamaica, had to settle for third in the open women’s 60 metres in 7.30 seconds as she trailed the Jamaican twin sisters Tina and Tia Clayton, who did 7.25 and 7.28 for first and second respectively.

Also at the meet, Wanya McCoy, a sophomore at Florida, had the fastest qualifying time of 6.58 for a new lifetime best. He came back in the final and posted another fast time of 6.65 for second behind Myles Thomas, a sophomore at LSU, who won in 6.62.

Florida’s junior Anthaya Charlton produced the seventh fastest qualifying time of 7.36m but she didn’t contest the final.

In the 200m, Grand Bahamian Shatalya Dorsette

clocked her personal best of 24.28. The Louisiana Tech freshman was 29th overall.

In the women’s 400m, Wendira Moss, a senior at Northern Colorado, was 26th overall in 55.31.

And Danielle Gibson picked up a sixth place finish in the women’s 60m hurdles in 8.11 after she turned in the fourth fastest qualifying time in the preliminaries in 8.14.

On the field, Nairn, competing in the men’s invitational long jump, soared 26-0 1/4 (7.93m) for third place. Florida’s senior Malcolm Clemons, a senior at Florida, won with 26-93/4 (8.17m).

And Mateo Smith, a sophomore at Louisiana Tech, cleared 23-4 (7.11m) for ninth place in the men’s long jump.

Valcourt and Jackson lifetime feats At the Tiger Paw Invitational at the Clemson University Indoor Track in Clemson, South Carolina, Tennessee’s sophomore Javonya Valcourt ran a personal best of 52.32 for sixth place in the women’s 400m.

She now has the 265th best time in the NCAA. Also at the meet, Calea Jackson, a freshman at Miami, competed in the women’ weight throw where she placed seventh with her lifetime best of 60-61/2 (18.45m).

Roberts PB leads SDSU At the SDSU Indoor Classic in Bookings, South Dakota, Shavantae Roberts qualified for the finals with a 7.71 preliminary time.

She came back in the final for fourth place with a 7.73 time.

Roberts, a Msu-Moorhead sophomore, also clocked a new personal best in the 200m dash later in the day with a time of 25.17 to finish seventh overall and the fourth-fastest indoor 200m in school history.

In the men’s 200m, another Msu-Moorhead sophomore Elkan Johnson also posted a new indoor personal best

with a time of 23.33 for 51st place overall.

And on the field, MsuMoorhead senior and junior Shyrone Kemp and Tyler Missick finished in a two-way tie for second place in the men’s high jump wirth a leap of 6-06 (1.98m). Braden Brown, a junior at North Dakota State, won the event with 6-08 (2.03m).

CELTICS BEAT HEAT, THUNDER DEFEAT KINGS FOR 1ST TIME THIS SEASON (AP) — Jayson Tatum had 26 points, 10 rebounds and nine assists and the NBA-leading Boston Celtics withstood a late rally to beat the Miami Heat 110-106 on Sunday.

Kristaps Porzingis had 25 points, Jaylen Brown had 20 and Jrue Holiday scored 15 for Boston, which hit 16 of 39 3-point attempts.

The Celtics have won all three matchups with the Heat this season and have won six of the last seven games against them.

Tyler Herro had 22 of his 24 points in the second half, Bam Adebayo scored 22 and Duncan Robinson and Caleb Martin finished with 15 points each for the Heat.

Miami was without leading scorer Jimmy Butler, who was granted a leave of absence because of the death of a family member.

Miami rallied from a 15-point deficit in the third quarter and cut it to 106-104 on Herro’s 3-pointer with 1:49 remaining.

But Porzingis and Tatum each converted two free throws to secure the win.

THUNDER 127, KINGS 113 OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — Shai GilgeousAlexander had 38 points and Jalen Williams scored 32 as Oklahoma City beat Sacramento for the first time in three meetings this season.

Williams also had nine assists and seven rebounds. Lu Dort had 17 points and nine rebounds and Chet Holmgren added 14 points for the Thunder. Oklahoma City bounced back from a 146-111 loss at Dallas on Saturday.

Domantas Sabonis had 21 points, 14 assists and 11 rebounds for the Kings. Malik Monk led the team with 26 points.

Sacramento leading scorer De’Aaron Fox was held to 15 points on 6-for17 shooting.

SPORTS CALENDAR SWIMMING GADSON RECORD PERFORMANCE SWIMMER Emmanuel Gadson had a huge day over the weekend when he established a new record in the boys’ 17-18 200 yard breaststroke, not just once, but twice at the Senior Short Course Championships.

GADSON His new record now stands at one minute and 57.82 seconds.

BASKETBALL HIGGS PASSED AWAY THE basketball community in Fox Hill is mourning the loss of one of its talented young players. Miguel “Shorts” Higgs died on Friday at HIGGS the Princess Margaret

Feb. 2024

Hospital. He was 32. He is survived by his parents Denise and Kevin Higgs, three sisters Jaeelah, Kareemah and Alexis Higgs and one brother Jamal Higgs.

He graduated from the Doris Johnson Secondary High where he played as a guard for the Mystic Marlins. He went on to play for the Macedonia Baptist Church Warriors in the Baptist Sports Council.

Higgs played briefly in the New Providence Basketball Association.

TRACK FAST TRACK INVITATIONAL FAST Track Athletics announced that its third annual Spring Invitational will take place over the weekend of May 10 from 6pm and May 11 at the Grand Bahama Sports Complex.

The entry fee will be $10 for adults and $5 for children. For more information,

SEE PAGE 18

PAGE 18, Monday, February 12, 2024

THE TRIBUNE

Mahomes rallies Chiefs to second straight Super Bowl title, 25-22 over 49ers in OT

By ROB MAADDI AP Pro Football Writer LAS VEGAS (AP) — Patrick Mahomes, Travis Kelce and the Kansas City Chiefs are back-to-back Super Bowl champions.

Mahomes threw a 3-yard touchdown pass to Mecole Hardman with 3 seconds left in overtime, and the Chiefs rallied to beat the San Francisco 49ers 25-22 last night, becoming the first repeat Super Bowl champs in 19 years and ninth overall.

With pop star Taylor Swift watching boyfriend Kelce from a suite, the Chiefs captured their third title in five years and firmly established themselves as a dynasty.

The NFL’s first Super Bowl in Las Vegas was a sloppy, mistake-filled affair that was mostly boring until the back-and-forth fourth quarter and OT. It was the second of 58 Super Bowls to be tied after regulation, and the first played under new overtime rules that ensured both teams got the ball.

The Chiefs trailed 22-19 after Jake Moody kicked a 27-yard field goal on the first possession of overtime, but Mahomes rallied the Chiefs, completing another impressive comeback in a rematch of the Super Bowl four years ago.

Mahomes ran 8 yards on fourth-and-1 to keep the Chiefs’ chances alive and then scrambled 19 yards to set up the winning score.

After he connected with a wide-open Hardman, the Chiefs ran on the field as red-and-yellow confetti fell onto the turf.

The most excitement in the first half came when a frustrated Kelce bumped

KANSAS City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes (15) celebrates after the NFL Super Bowl 58 football game against the San Francisco 49ers last night in Las Vegas.

(AP Photo/John Locher) Andy Reid on the side- couldn’t make enough becomes the fourth start- remaining, Mahomes line, knocking the Chiefs’ plays, denying Mr. Irrel- ing QB to win three Super and Kelce went to work.

65-year-old coach a few evant an opportunity to go Bowls — joining Brady, Joe Mahomes connected with steps back after teammate from last pick in the 2022 Montana, Terry Bradshaw Kelce for a 22-yard gain Isiah Pacheco fumbled NFL draft to Super Bowl and Troy Aikman — and to set up Butker’s tying inside the red zone during champion. second-youngest. kick, a 29-yarder with 3 the second quarter.

Mahomes and Reid are Niners wide receiver seconds left. A holding The action picked up now halfway to Tom Brady Jauan Jennings threw a TD call on Kansas City’s Trent after a crucial blunder by and Bill Belichick, who pass and caught one, joining McDuffie extended San San Francisco’s special won six championships in Eagles quarterback Nick Francisco’s opening drive of teams set up Mahomes’ 20 years together with the Foles six years ago as the overtime and Purdy made 16-yard TD pass to Mar- New England Patriots and only players to do both in key throws to drive the quez Valdes-Scantling for a were the most recent team the Super Bowl.

49ers to the Chiefs 9. But 13-10 lead. to go back-to-back followAfter Moody’s 53-yard San Francisco settled for Brock Purdy and the ing the 2003-04 seasons. field goal gave the Niners a field goal. Purdy, Chris49ers answered but they The 28-year-old Mahomes a 19-16 lead with 1:53 tian McCaffrey and the

Niners jumped ahead 10-0, but that’s no big deal for Mahomes and the Chiefs in the Super Bowl. They’ve trailed by 10 points in all three of their victories, including last year’s 38-35 win over Philadelphia.

Mahomes wasn’t at his best early and threw an interception. But with the game on the line, he was a magician once again. He finished 34 of 46 for 333 yards and two TDs. The game turned when San Francisco’s Ray-Ray McCloud couldn’t scoop a punt that hit teammate Darrell Luter Jr.’s leg and the Chiefs recovered at the 49ers 16, leading to Mahomes’ go-ahead TD pass to Valdes-Scantling.

The Niners answered on the next possession with Purdy tossing a 10-yard TD pass to Jennings for a 16-13 lead. Moody’s extra point was blocked.

Niners coach Kyle Shanahan gambled on fourth-and-3 from the Chiefs 15, passing up a chance for a tying field goal.

Purdy hit George Kittle for a 4-yard gain and then found Jennings for the score. Shanahan resorted to trickery for the only touchdown in the first half.

Jennings, a wide receiver who had never thrown a pass in an NFL game, tossed a 21-yard TD to McCaffrey. He was hit as he threw, but McCaffrey snagged the wobbly pass across the field and sprinted to the end zone.

Shanahan fell to 0-2 as a head coach in Super Bowls and 0-3 overall, including a loss when he was offensive coordinator for Atlanta.

That was the game in which Brady and the Patriots rallied from a 28-3 deficit to win in OT.

SOFTBALL LEGEND VAN ‘LIL JOE’ JOHNSON DIES AT AGE OF 60

By BRENT STUBBS Senior Sports Reporter bstubbs@tribunemedia.net THE Eleuthera Softball Association’s Jets, the New Providence Softball Association’s perennial kingpins Budweiser Eagles and Truckers softball teams and the men’s national softball team, lost one of its most talented and versatile players in the death of Van “Lil Joe” Johnson.

Johnson, short in stature, but known for his speed as a player, passed away on Thursday, February 8 at The Princess Margaret Hospital.

The 60-year-old is survived by his parents Lillian and Prince Petty. His father, Benson Johnson, predeceased him.

Johnson, who moved back home in Eleuthera a couple years ago to

SPORTS CALENDAR FROM PAGE 17 persons are asked to contact 242727-6826 or fasttrackmanagamentoo@ gmail.com BASKETBALL GSSSA FINALS THE Government Secondary Schools Sports Association’s best-ofthree championship series will kick off today at the Kendal Isaacs Gymnasium.

Here’s a look at the match-ups on tap, starting at 4:30pm: Junior girls - HO Nash vs CH Reeves.

Junior boys - DW Davis vs Anatol Rodgers.

Senior girls - CV Bethel vs CR Walker.

Senior boys - CI Gibson vs Anatol Rodgers.

Admission for students in uniform is $3. Adults id $5.

BAHAMAS BAPTIST SPORTS FEDERATION RUN/WALK IN their relaunch of the Bahamas Baptist Sports Federation, formerly the Bahamas Sports Council, a Family Fun

continue to work at the Ministry of Works, has eight children - Leonardo McKenzie, Amber Johnson, Cailyn Johnson, Sherese Johnson, Joshua Johnson, Mariah Gibson and Diego Hutchinson.

He also has eight sisters Aretha Rolle, Avis Bethel, Vanessa Mayne, Christine and Jennarosa Johnson, Beatrice Hall, Jodie EWilson and Tamiko Williams

Feb. 2024

Run/Walk will be held on Saturday, February 17 at the William Thompson Auditorium on Jean Street.

The event, to be held in honour of the Rev. Dr. Philip McPhee - the 11th president of the Bahamas Baptist Missionary and Educational Conventional - is scheduled to begin at 6am.

The walk will start at the William Thompson Auditorium in Jean Street and travel south to Prince Charles Drive, turn right onto Prince Charles Drive and head west to Soldier Road, turn onto Soldier Road and head north to Bernard Road, turn onto Bernard Road and head to Jean Street, turn onto Jean Street and finish at the William Thompson Auditorium.

The run will start at the William Thompson Auditorium on Jean Street and head north to Bernard Road, turn right onto Bernard Road and head east to Fox Hill Road, continue onto Fox Hill Road to Prince Charles Drive, turn right onto Prince Charles Drive and head west to Jean Street, turn onto Jean Street and finish at the William Thompson Auditorium.

and four brothers Thaddeus and Ezra Petty and Ettiene and Jeremy Johnson.

Mayne, speaking on behalf of the siblings, described Johnson as a “protector, surrogate father, confidante, friend and a great big brother.”

When Van Johnson migrated to Nassau, he couldn’t make the Budweiser Eagles’ line-up in the NPSA, so he was encouraged to play in the B division with the T-Bird Flyers.

Despite not being on the team, he attended the Eagles’ practices and eventually was allowed to play for Budweiser.

According to long-time manager Philip ‘Sparrow’ Saunders, Johnson was a welcomed addition with his tremendous speed that he executed on the base path.

“He was a guy willing to fit in any position. He was a guy you would like to have on your team,” Saunders recalled. “He could hit and run, but the weakest part of his game was on defence in the infield.

“He eventually moved to the outfield where he turned out to be a great defensive player. He was also a very nice fella. It’s so sad to know that he passed away. He didn’t have a bad reputation. Nobody could say that he was one to argue with anybody in the ballpark.”

Eagles’ ace pitcher Richard ‘the Lion-Heart’ Johnson said he had fond memories of Johnson both as a player, as a friend and a brother.

“We started out together with Elvis, Jerry Rolle, Marcus Johnson, George Johnson, Edmund and Edney Bethel as little boys in JC (James Cistern) with the Prop Jets, the younger version of the big Jets,” Johnson said. “We played a little in the league

(Eleuthera Softball Association), but we didn’t do well because we were scared and everyone was bigger than us. Then we moved to the Jets and the Guiness Jets and a number of other teams before we came to Nassau.”

While Richard Johnson was establishing himself with Budweiser, when Van Johnson came to the Eagles, the rest was history.

“He was hard-headed, fast and a very good ball player,” Richard Johnson said. “He put the ball down with his bunt and got on base. He was the table setter for us for a lot of years. We enjoyed him and we enjoyed playing with him.”

Marvin ‘Tougie’ Wood, who played on many Eagles and Truckers championship teams, called it a hard pill to swallow.

“This is a hard one. Lil Joe was the heart of the Truckers’ organisation for years,” Wood said. “He was also a national team player, whom I played on the side.

He was a man small in stature, but a giant of a man.

He’s going to be missed a lot.”

For those men reading this, Wood also offered this piece of advice.

“For all of the older guys, let’s take care of our bodies and go and get checked up regularly,” he stated. “If we can prevent any type of sickness, let’s do it. Lil Joe was an eye-opener for many of us. He will be missed.”

From 1999 until 2015, veteran coach/manager Godfrey ‘Gully’ Burnside said he got the opportunity to view Johnson as a player, either on the opposite side of the field or on the same side as members of the men’s national team.

“He was a lot of energy, fast and one of those guys who was really enthused

about playing the game,” Burnside said. “What I liked the most about Van is every time we took some of the younger fellows, he was able along with Greg Gardiner, to work with them.

“He was never one to keep his talent to himself.

He worked with them, demonstrated to them and he encouraged them. I know he did the same with my son when he was playing. So he will be missed,” Martin ‘Pork’ Burrows said his relationship with Johnson transcended beyond the baseball diamond or softball field.

“Van wasn’t just a teammate, or a friend, but he was like a brother,” Burrows said. “When Van came to Nassau, I had the opportunity to make sure that he got employment over at Paradise Island. “But we went a long way back. So it’s a tough loss for me.”

Shocked by his passing, Minister of Youth, Sports and Culture Mario Bowleg said he will follow up with his contacts in Eleuthera because Johnson was very committed and dedicated to the game of softball.

“He always wanted to ensure that the Eleuthera teams were always represented in every aspect as it relates to softball,” Johnson said. “So we will miss a legend of softball in the country. I hope we can find a way to remember him through what he has given back to softball.”

Plans have already been announced for his funeral service, scheduled for Saturday, February 24 at 1pm at the Wesley Methodist Church in James Cistern, Eleuthera.

A memorial service is set for Thursday at 7pm at the Global Outreach Ministries in James Cistern and on Thursday, February 22 in New Providence.

THE TRIBUNE

Monday, February 12, 2024, PAGE 19

DEVYNNE CHARLTON, shown here in this file photo, yesterday set the world indoor record in the 60 metre hurdles at the Millrose Games in New York. the race, but she said DEVYNNE before she was just locked in and her parents making CHARLTON with their third time to Millrose

FROM PAGE 15

admitted that everything is geared to getting her on the podium at the World Indoors March 1-3 in Glasgow.

“One of the first things I said to my coach was that now I want to break the world record indoors and at that moment we put a plan in place,” Charlton said.

“It’s been a goal of mine for a while and we looked at everything indoor and outdoor last year and focused on my weak points and built on that in practice.

“I knew it was in me. I knew the type of numbers I was putting up in practice like I had this type of race in me. It was all about executing it.”

While he was unable to attend the meet, due to his collegiate responsibilities as the head coach of the University of Kentucky, Bahamian Rolando ‘Lonnie’ Greene said Charlton’s performance was exactly what they were working on.

“I just told her ‘baby girl,’ just be you,” Greene said. “I told her father after Texas in January that I don’t know when it’s going to show up, but it will show up. She’s going to break the world record.

“I’ve seen the race about 100 times, but I think she can go faster. I think she can go 7.65 or better and I think it will show up in Glasgow. I believe that with all my heart.

“The things she’s been doing in practice this year is just unbelievable. All I can say is wow. I try to shut her down in practice, but she’s like ‘coach, I can go further. So what she did didn’t surprise me. I knew it was going to come.”

Greene, who formerly coached Charlton in college at the University of Tennessee, thanked God for allowing him to experience the journey that she is on.

He said he will definitely be in Glasgow as she attempts to go after the gold medal and possibly another world record.

Charlton was coming off a 2024 campaign opener in Louisville with a victory in 7.88 and a national record of 7.75 a week later before she lost out to Jones last week in Boston..

“I think early on, we were just trying to see where we’re at, see how practice was going, get an idea of what’s going on,” she said.

“I think after my second meet and I ran 7.75, I went to my coach and said it was a sloppy race.

“And so I knew that once we went back and started working on it, this race would show up. It could have been there in Boston.

I didn’t get it, so once I went back, the focus was on executing that perfect race.”

There wasn’t anything different that Charlton did

Games to watch her compete, she didn’t want to disappoint them.

“I was just happy that they were here,” said Charlton, who almost came to tears as she expressed her gratitude to having them present as they have done in so many of her major international competitions.

“I wanted to make them proud,” she stated.

“To have them here was special.”

After she lowered the national record to 7.75, Charlton said her parents were in tears as they spoke to her, but she advised them not to get too excited because something very special was coming.

She pointed out that they can now “cry” having inked her name on the world record.

In the process, Charlton joined Shaunae Miller-Uibo, who currently holds the world record in the women’s indoors 200m of 22.40 that she established on January 31, 2021 in Fayetteville, Arkansas as well as the world’s best in both the outdoor straight 150 (16.23) on May 20, 2018 and 200m (21.76) on June 4, 2017.

But coming from such a small country, Charlton said it’s remarkable the achievements Bahamian athletes are making, not just in track and field, but in so many other sports, including the National Basketball Association and the Women’s National Basketball Association.

“We’re proving that we’re one of the best sporting countries in the world,” she pointed out.

“I think it’s very special, considering our size,” added Charlton.

Charlton’s performance got the attention of Prime Minister Philip Davis, who made this statement on behalf of the 300,000-plus Bahamian people.

“Devynne Charlton has redefined excellence, setting a new world indoor 60m hurdles record at 7.67 seconds.

“Your determination and talent have lifted every Bahamian spirit, proving that greatness is within our reach.

“You deserve this moment, Devynne. This is your year, and we are all behind you. Thank you for making us proud.”

As she makes the trek to the World Indoors, Charlton said she will go on to compete in Madrid, Spain in about two weeks.

But she’s going to celebrate the record before someone breaks it.

When she sat down over dinner with her parents, Charlton said if there was one thing she was eager to indulge in was some dessert with her choice of preference being a brownie with some ice cream or a sundae.

She deserves everything she consumes and more.

PAGE 20, Monday, February 12, 2024

THE TRIBUNE

St John’s College Giants haul away three titles

By TENAJH SWEETING Tribune Sports Reporter tsweeting@tribunemedia.net THE St John’s College junior and senior girls hauled away two more championships on Friday to secure their second and third title of the Bahamas Association of Independent Secondary Schools (BAISS) basketball season.

The Giants made it to yet another senior girls’ championship but this time they took home bragging rights after defeating the Kingsway Academy Saints 36-34.

The first game of the double header saw the Giants narrowly knock off the St Augustine’s College junior girls 15-12 at the Kendal GL Isaacs Gymnasium.

Junior Girls The low-scoring affair between the Big Red Machine and Giants showed glimpses of the previous game but with a different result.

Similar to game two of the series, the Giants came out on a mission in the first half while SAC struggled on offence.

The newly-crowned champions opened the game on a 6-0 run and completed the opening period up 6-1.

The Giants kept rolling in the following quarter where Mariana Cruzman nailed back-to-back jumpers, making the score 11-5 with 1:58 on the clock.

The team went into the break up 12-3.

Malcolm Rahming, head coach of the junior girls, had this message for his team headed into the next half after game two’s meltdown.

WE ARE THE CHAMPIONS: The St John’s College junior girls, junior boys and senior girls left the Bahamas Association of Independent Secondary Schools (BAISS) basketball championships with bragging rights in three out of four contested divisions.

Photos: Tenajh Sweeting “I told them we just got to be honest with ourselves, look ourselves in the mirror and fix our mistakes in what we could control.

“It is not over, it is never over until it is over so we just came out here tonight and fought,” coach Rahming said.

The Big Red Machine cut down the 9-point deficit with a 7-2 run and got as close as 14-12 on the scoreboard.

It seemed as if SAC would pull off yet another comeback victory but their offence was non-existent in the fourth quarter where they scored zero points.

Meanwhile, the lone point scored for the Giants in the period was earned at the charity stripe by Dania Rolle to seal the championship win.

Rolle finished with a game-high nine points and was named the Most Valuable Player (MVP).

Coach Rahming gave credit to the Big Red Machine for a hard-fought series. “I want to give them credit, the truth is they have been beating us since last year. I didn’t get my first win off them until the championships so kudos to them, they did a good job. I know they trained and played hard so I want to give them their due,” he said.

Senior Girls With the crowd at the KGLI gymnasium still soaking in the junior girls’

title victory, the Giants’ senior girls capitalised on their moment as well.

SJC led 26-21 at the halftime break.

However, the Saints were able to regain their footing and climb within one (2827) with 2:27 remaining in the third. The Saints then managed to get the edge 31-30 following a big layup to start the final quarter of the championship round.

After this juncture, the game was a back and forth affair between the senior girls. With the Giants up 34-33 and 1:00 on the clock, Rianna Greene got the ball from an inbounds play but came up short on the go ahead layup. However, the Giants corralled the offensive rebound and Greene received the ball in the corner and this time she drove into the paint to convert on a tough fall away shot. Kingsway’s Andica Curtis was fouled down the stretch but split her free throws leaving room for the Giants to run away with their third BAISS basketball title of 2024.

The MVP honours went to Greene who finished with nine points. Her teammate Stevanah Turnquest dropped a game-high 18 points.

Oswaldo Taylor, head coach of the senior girls, was elated to see his school take home three titles for the 2024 BAISS basketball season.

“It feels awesome, we should have had four teams instead of three but we are only fortunate to have three. The three of the teams won and it feels great. Right now I cannot explain it in words but I just thank God that he brought us through this path and gave us the energy and willpower to push on and win this year,” Taylor said.

Despite the contest being close in the final period, he said he told the girls to just protect the ball.

“All we needed to do was protect the ball. We had the lead, at one point they took the lead back with under two minutes on the clock then we came back and went up three on them. All I wanted them to do was not get careless with the ball and only go to the rim if they had wide open shots,” he said.

The Giants’ coach said both teams did a great job and congratulated the Saints for pushing them to a third game. Celebrations are expected to be grand for the school.

The BAISS basketball championships are now in the books with the Giants taking the junior boys and girls and senior girls titles.

The Charles W Saunders Cougars repeated as champions in the senior boys’ division.

Next up for the BAISS will be the track and field meet set for March 6-8.