Barbados Olympic Association Inc.

ABOUT THE BOA

An accident in West Indian politics precipitated the emergence of the Olympic Movement in Barbados.

When in 1962, following the now historic pronouncement by the late Dr. Eric Williams, former Prime Minister of Trinidad and Tobago, “One from ten equals zero” the West Indies Federation collapsed, the demise of the West Indies Olympic Association inevitably followed.

With the formation of the West Indies Federation, The West Indian Olympic Association was established. The dominant members of this body were Jamaica and Trinidad & Tobago, whose athletes formed the nucleus of the two West Indies teams that participated in international Olympic competition. In 1959 a West Indies Team competed at the Pan American Games in Chicago with five Barbadians included in the squad. These were Fred Marville – Weightlifting, Reds Packer, John Burke, Geoffrey Foster and Albert Weatherhead - Water Polo. The West Indies Olympic Association then participated in the 1960 Olympic Games in Rome. Barbados’ representatives were James Wedderburn – Track & Field and Grantley Sobers – Weightlifting. It was in Rome in 1960 that Jim Wedderburn became the first Barbadian athlete to gain an Olympic Medal as a member of the West Indies 4 x 400 Relay Team.

So, with the collapse of the West Indies Federation came the demise of the West Indies Olympic Association. The late Louis Lynch, a Past President of the Amateur Athletic Association of Barbados and Michael Simmons, at the time a Vice President of the Amateur Athletic Association seized the moment over lunch at a Broad Street Restaurant and named a Steering Committee comprising Jack Knight, Ken Ince, Delbert Bannister and Randolph Field. This grouping summoned a meeting of representatives of the then existing National Federations in Barbados. The result was the formation of the Barbados Olympic Association. Mr. Louis Lynch was elected the first President and Mr. Michael Simmons the first Secretary General thus establishing themselves and the steering committee mentioned earlier as the founding fathers of the Barbados Olympic movement.

 

This was the year 1962 and the Draft Constitution of the Barbados Olympic Association was submitted along with a letter of application to the International Olympic Committee. With the IOC’s official sanction of the Barbados NOC the way was paved for our maiden competition as an Olympic Nation at the IX Central American and Caribbean Games in Kingston, Jamaica, at which our delegation competed with successes in Athletics, Boxing, Cycling, Swimming, Waterpolo and Weightlifting.

Louis Lynch saw the realization of his dream by leading Barbados to our first Olympic Games as an Independent Nation. The year was 1968 and the XXth Olympiad was held in Mexico City: The first time in Central America.

Sadly, Louis Lynch died at a comparatively young age the year after in 1969 and Michael Simmons was elected President with Steve Stoute replacing Simmons as Secretary General. Stoute at the time was General Secretary of the Barbados Cycling Union. Michael Simmons served as President until his retirement in 1981, when Austin Sealy was elected President. Steve Stoute continued in the position of Secretary General.

The formative years of the Association were financially stressful. The Olympic Movement was a novel concept and did not excite popular interest. As a result, fundraising efforts were unrewarding. Because the country lacked modern competition facilities, we were unable to attract top-class foreign athletes, competing against whom in local competitions, would have contributed to the improvement of the skills and standards of our athletes. The governments of the day, except in very small measure, were unresponsive to requests for financial help. Despite these obstacles, modest returns from fundraising, levies imposed on participating associations and contributions from benefactors, enabled us to maintain a presence at all Olympic and Olympic Regional Games, except in 1980, when at the request of the United States Government, we boycotted the Olympic Games in Moscow.

In Los Angeles in 1984, the men’s 4 x 400m relay team secured a place in the final thereby becoming the first Barbadians since Wedderburn in 1960 to participate in an Olympic final. The team of Clyde Edwards, Elvis Forde, Richard Louis and David Peltier placed 6th.

Before the formation of the West Indies Olympic Association, Barbados Champion Cyclist Ken Farnum participated as a member of the Jamaican team at the Helsinki 1956 Olympic Games. Also, prior to the advent of the West Indies Olympic Association, Farnum was therefore the first Barbadian Olympian.

    

Barbados had competed at the British Empire Games with some success. These Games were established in 1930 primarily to provide sporting opportunities for the countries and states of the then British Commonwealth of Nations. A country or state did not need a National Olympic Committee to compete and Barbados first competed in Vancouver in 1954. By then the name had been changed to British Empire and Commonwealth Games. It was at the Games in Cardiff, Wales that Barbados won its first Gold medal when Weightlifter Blair Blenman bested the competition in the middleweight competition.

In the next Games held in Perth, Australia in 1960, Anton Norris won a Bronze medal in the High Jump. By 1970, the Barbados Olympic Association Inc. was in existence and it was under this banner that Mango Phillips won a Silver medal lifting in the bantam weight class at the British Empire and Commonwealth Games in Edinburgh.

These Games were subsequently renamed the Commonwealth Games in 1978.

Two events, one during the seventies and the other during the nineties proved to be a watershed in the history and development of the Movement. In 1970 The National Stadium, a modern multi-purpose sports facility, and the brainchild of the island’s first Prime Minister, the late Errol Barrow, was constructed. Marcel DeVerteuil was the first Chairman. The facilities immediately drew international attention, and soon Barbados was playing hosts to internationally renowned athletes from several countries around the world in athletics, cycling and football on a regular basis. The events not only heightened popular interest, with sell-out crowds at almost all events, but they also provided the much needed stimuli for the development of our athletes.

Then, over two decades later, in 1994 the Olympio On-Line Lottery was established, becoming the Lottery of the Association. This generated much needed revenue and totally changed the structure and management of the Barbados Olympic Association Inc. The Association was able to initiate numerous plans and projects aimed at enhancing the administration abilities of National Federations and improving the sporting infrastructure. Full funding was provided for Olympic, Pan American and other Games. No longer were levies and token support from government necessary. Results of these initiatives were seen when Obadele Thompson placed 4th in the 200 meters and Leah Martindale 5th in the 50 meters freestyle at the 1996 Olympic Games in Atlanta. The Barbados Team at the 1998 Commonwealth Games saw Andrea Blackett winning a Gold Medal in the 400 meters hurdles and Barry Forde a Bronze Medal in the Match Sprint Cycling event. In the Central American and Caribbean Games of that year, Forde won a Gold Medal, Thompson a Bronze and Blackett a Silver.

A record of five medals were won at the 1999 Pan American Games culminating with the first ever Olympic Medal at the 2000 Sydney Olympic Games, when Obadele Thompson placed 3rd in the 100 meters.

The Association also was able to lease office space and employ a staff to support the ever increasing work load of new initiatives.

Austin Sealy who in 1994 was elected to the IOC, the first and only Barbadian to achieve this, resigned as President in 1996. Steve Stoute was elected President and Erskine Simmons, his Assistant Secretary General, was elevated to Secretary General.

The year 2006 heralded another major milestone in the annals of Barbados Olympic history. This was the completion of a new office block within the Garfield Sobers Sports Complex at Wildey. The lands were made available by Government. This new ‘Olympic Centre’, as it is called, gave the Association permanent premises and providing meeting rooms, office facilities for the Secretariat, a Museum and an Information Centre. It is hoped that the new facility will be officially inaugurated by IOC President, Dr. Jacques Rogge in 2008.

Now in its 45th year of existence, the Barbados Olympic Association Inc. continues its dramatic growth pattern of the last decade. The necessary administrative infrastructures have been put in place to build a vibrant Olympic movement. However, a National Olympic Committee cannot be the sole agency responsible for national sporting development. It is necessary to work in close cooperation with all other national institutions charged with social welfare and education to fulfill the ultimate goal of a dynamic sporting infrastructure. In its strategic plan the Barbados Olympic Association Inc will work towards involving salient agencies and publics as partners in achieving the fundamental goal under the Olympic Charter which is to contribute to building a peaceful and better nation by educating youth through sport practiced without discrimination of any kind and in the Olympic spirit, which requires mutual understanding with a spirit of friendship, solidarity and fair play.