Anatomy of a Championship

It has been 20 years since the Inter-Secondary Schools Sports Association high-school athletics championships became a combined event for boys and girls, and Branford Gayle, the former Munro College principal who was the then Champs committee chairman, has described the unification as a “masterstroke”.

“At ISSA, we thought if we combined both-champs, the girls could then piggy-back on the boys and get publicity and get a lot of sponsorship. They would join up and have one Champs, but it would be mainly to see that the girls get the publicity that they deserve,” he said.

The decision to join the championships because the girls’ competition was not without opposition, as, Gayle recalled, a number of boys’ schools threatened to boycott the event.

“I was flabbergasted, really. So I told them, don’t send any entry, and send a letter to say you won’t take part and next year, if you choose to take part, we will consider you. Nobody dropped out. Maybe they thought it was a threat, (but) everybody came,” he said.

“When the principals were wondering and bothering about schools these schools were not going to take part, I said Champs is bigger than all of us and if they don’t enter, they don’t enter,” he added.

He was right. No school withdrew and the championships proceeded to become the success it is today.

The joint championship was not without teething pains. The original Girls’ Championships were held over two days midweek, while Boys’ Championships were held over three days, from Thursday to Saturday, and trying to organise the competition in such a way that boys’ events did not continue to dominate the programme was a challenge.

“We lengthened Championships. We tried all sorts of things. One year, we tried Intercol and that didn’t work. Then we had combined girls and then boys, and from then it has been a success,” Gayle said.

Last year, GraceKennedy renewed its deal to sponsor the Inter-Secondary Schools Sports Association Boys’ and Girls’ Athletic Championships to the tune of J$80 million.

According to Gayle, “when I was there if you got a $20 million, you did well”.

Current Champs committee chairman and Wolmer’s Girls’ School principal Colleen Montague, who took over the reins in 2010, said it is that relationship with sponsors that has been one of the biggest changes since she took charge.

“The relationship with our sponsors have changed; their activities have expanded, there is a three-month lead time to the Championships and the type of activities that the sponsors engage in has changed,” said Montague.

She was also proud of the improvements in the technology employed in the running of the five-day event, including electronic registration and electronic video boards inside the National Stadium during Championships.

“The data that is used inside the stadium, the entertainment value that is being added to the event; the entertainment has ranged over the five days, that has changed as well,” she said.

Montague is hoping that the Championships will continue to evolve, that technology and equipment will stay relevant and current, and that fans and athletes will continue to benefit while she is at the helm.

“(And) we want to make sure that the athletes and the teams surrounding the athletes are as comfortable as possible in the space, so an increase how the athletes and the teams are treated, and in the efficiency as to how we manage the teams,” she said.