Smith willing to restore public confidence in Sports Ministry

Smith spoke yesterday at the Ministry of Sport’s Abercromby Street office in Port-of-Spain, where he discussed his first year’s experiences as a Minister, his plans for the local Olympic and Paralympic athletes, and his expectations for the future.

“I’m a Member of Parliament first and foremost,” he said, referring to his constituency of Diego Martin Central. “It has had its challenges and it can be very difficult at times, especially in terms of restoring the level of confidence of stakeholders and athletes in the Ministry once again.

“A lot of persons would agree that the previous Government lost the (General Elections) because of sport and the allegations of rampant corruption that were taking place within the Ministry.

It’s been an uphill battle to try and get a grip of the state of sport and sports management, but I remain committed to the task at hand.” In addition to returning the standard and transparency of the Ministry of Sport, Smith says that he is driven to return focus on athletes and intends to begin a more grounded approach as he attempts to tackle issues of funding and adequate facilities for athletes. Speaking on the recent success of Trinidad and Tobago’s Para-athlete, Akeem Stewart at the 2016 Paralympic Games in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Smith said that he spoke to the Stewart’s father Wayne before, and after, his performance last Friday, in which he earned a gold medal in the Men’s Javelin.

“I spoke to his dad and we both agreed that when he (Akeem) returns home we will be discussing a way forward for him. Of course we don’t have as much money as we did, but we still aim to reward our athletes for their successes.” Smith added that the Ministry of Sport together with other stakeholders will soon be performing an assessment of the Rio 2016 Olympic and Paralympic Games, and expressed his desire to provide greater focus on Paralympic athletes in light of Stewart’s historic win.

Smith said that in his year as Minister, he has worked towards getting more youths interested in sports, through various initiatives, adding that he was pleased with the overall response he has received from parents, teachers and students themselves. “We’ve started a few programmes that really dealt with working with young athletes at the Primary and Secondary school level, it’s crucial to get them involved at this early stage so that we can hone in on their talents and abilities.” Newsday contacted the president of the Trinidad and Tobago Basketball Association, Claudia Mitchell, who gave Smith a passing grade for his year’s work. Mitchell said that she was thoroughly satisfied with the response received by the Minister and was optimistic that local athletes would continue to prosper, with Minister Smith at the helm.

“He’s been the Minister for only a year, and already he has made progress that no Minister has ever been able to make.” Hayden Mitchell, president of the Trinidad and Tobago Tennis Association, said that he was also satisfied with Smith’s performance thus far and lauded him for his selfless approach to sport.

“He puts athletes first, and that’s something we haven’t seen in a while. I would say that I’m very pleased with his work and I’m looking forward to his continued efforts.”