Trini gets BBC call

THE voice of a Trinidadian will be heard on BBC, doing commentary on horse racing.

BBC recently lured 29-year-old Rishi Persad from rivals C4, and he will be understudy to their female lead commentator Clare Balding. For some time the BBC were on the lookout for somebody to fill in for Balding who is the leading racing broadcaster in England, since she is being increasingly used on non-racing projects. Balding is also tabbed to play a prominent role in BBC’s Athena Olympic coverage next summer. Persad who only made his debut at C4 in May last year, will see his first action as a BBC commentator on April 19, and will continue as part of the presenting team for Attheraces, racing’s dedicated satellite channel. It is understood, C4 desperately tried to persuade their prot?g? Persad to rebuff the BBC’s approaches. But Persad said: “It was a complete shock when the BBC approached me and I’m still in a daze. “I am really looking forward to working with Clare Balding.”