Schools Athletics Awaiting Starter’s Gun

The 2025 schools’ track and field season is likely to start next Tuesday, just over a week after its original schedule. The delay is due to persistent rain that has stalled works at the two main venues in the north of the island. Four primary school meets had been planned for this week, three of them at Mindoo Phillip Park (MPP) in Marchand, and the fourth at the Daren Sammy Cricket Ground (DSCG) in Beausejour. Instead, word from the management team and the ground staff at both venues is that nothing is likely to happen before next Tuesday. The main issue affecting the commencement of the games is the preparation and marking of the fields. Sports Saint Lucia Inc (SSI) has met with the contractor responsible for MPP and officials from the Ministry of Youth Development and Sports. Whereas some work has been completed since December, the field at MPP remains very water-laden, preventing the workers from being able to finish the process of preparing that field. “One of the intentions is to do a heavy roll and aerate some portions of the south side of the field, closest to the players’ pavilion end,” explained SSI general manager Kirby Sydney....