Jamaica to host int’l bobsleigh, skeleton congress in 2023
Published:Monday | May 31, 2021 | 12:12 AMDaniel Wheeler/Staff Reporter
Jamaica Bobsleigh and Skeleton Federation President Nelson Stokes says he is satisfied with the decision by Jamaica to postpone hosting duties for the International Bobsleigh and Skeleton Federation (IBSF) Congress scheduled for September.
Jamaica was expected to welcome representatives from over 40 countries at this year's staging, to discuss the most important issues affecting the sport, after originally winning the bid in 2019. However, because of COVID-19, the 2021 congress will be held virtually this year, as it was last year.
Stokes said that the decision was made easier as the international body offered them the opportunity to coincide with the 100th anniversary of the IBSF, recognising Jamaica's importance in the federation's future.
“I put forward the idea that we were willing to reconsider for the following year (2022),” Stokes told The Gleaner. “They came back and said that '2023 is the 100th anniversary of the formation of the IBSF and Jamaica is an integral member of the IBSF, and we think the future of the IBSF is interlocked with what Jamaica represents — the expansion of opportunity of smaller nations. We would like to invite you to host the congress in 2023 consistent with that 100-year anniversary,' which we agreed to readily.”
EXHIBITION
Stokes said that plans for the congress included exhibition competitions at the G.C. Foster College using the push track on location, as well as the portable track which was acquired in 2019. He said that the postponement will work out in their favour.
“It's not that Jamaica is an unsafe place to come to right now. It is that the experience that folks are looking for and the length of time that they want to stay, I think, could not be fully realised under the current protocols. We just felt that it would be safer to just put that back,” Stokes said. “It's a good agreement and I am optimistic that it will work out for the best.”
Jamaica last hosted the congress in 1999.
Stokes says that the federation was hoping to use the hosting opportunity to work closely with IBSF President Ivo Ferriani ahead of next year's election. However, he says that it will still use the virtual format to advance its agenda for more opportunities for smaller countries such as Jamaica.
“It's not so much a question of inclusion,” he said. “We want it to be accessible for those nations with the ambition, the drive, the tenacity to select athletes and field a team with the capability to learn the sport and to get better year over year.
“Nobody is asking for any handout or unfair terms. Just a pathway to be able to select, get athletes to train and compete. So that's the agenda that we want to advance. That's the message that we want to take forward with this particular congress, which we can do in 2023 without doubt.”
Ferriani says that he is confident that there will be unanimous support for Jamaica's application for hosting the 2023 congress.
“The Jamaica Bobsleigh and Skeleton Federation has been a key player in the promotion of our sports for decades, and it's only fair to celebrate the 100-year anniversary of the IBSF in Jamaica in 2023,” Ferriani said. “Obviously, the final decision will be taken by the congress delegates.”