Major announcements will be made in the coming weeks as the Trinidad and Tobago Olympic Committee  (TTOC) 10 or more Olympic Gold medals by the year 2024 #10golds24 project enters a new phase.

Launched in December last year .  Fund raising for 10golds24 kicked off with the participation of the TTOC president Brian Lewis in the Trinidad and Tobago International  Marathon On January 25th.

Interest in partnering with the TTOC 10 gold project is high and has resulted in discussions with a diverse group of private and public sector companies.

As part of the 10golds24 athlete welfare and preparation programme a request has been made to Government to establish an expedited elite athlete housing assistance programme.

In pursuit of its athlete welfare priority the TTOC is working with Guardian Group to design and develop a sport focused group medical insurance plan.

Also in progress is the creation of a medical services network which will provide athletes with discounted and expedited sport medicine and sport science services and support.

Eight athletes have received Olympic Solidarity scholarship funding through the TTOC to assist with preparation for qualification for next year's Rio 2016 Olympics.

TRINIDAD and Tobago will be among 12 countries doing battle from tomorrow in Jamaica the opening leg of CAZOVA (Caribbean Zonal Volleyball Association) women’s beach qualifying for the Olympic Games. Players from Aruba, Bahamas, Barbados, Cayman Islands, Curacao, Guadeloupe, Haiti, Martinique, Suriname, United States Virgin Islands and host country will also be competing in the three-day tournament. Each country will be represented by two pairs and the top six countries will advance to the second of four rounds of NORCECA (North, Central America and the Caribbean) qualifying for the Games of the XXXI Olympiad, which will be staged in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, in August next year. Apphia Glasgow and La Teisha Joseph will be flying the red, white and black in this competition, five days after reaching the quarter-finals of the opening leg of this year’s NORCECA Beach Tour in the Cayman Islands. This country’s other representatives are Elki Philip and Shenelle Gordon, who defeated Joseph and Glasgow all three times during the second leg of the Trinidad and Tobago Volleyball Federation’s (TTVF) Beach series last month. Glasgow, Gordon and Joseph are young and relatively inexperienced, but Philip is one of T&T’s most accomplished players on the sand. The highlights of the veteran’s career were just missing the podium with fourth-place finishes twice in NORCECA events, along with competing alongside Nancy Joseph in the Pan American Games in 2007. The format is the same for the men’s qualifying and the opening round will take place in Trinidad and Saith Park, Chaguanas, from next Friday until Sunday. The hosts will be represented by the Fabian Whitfield/Daneil Williams and Josiah Eccles/Tevin Joseph combinations. Williams and Whitfield won all ten TTVF tournaments at home this year, but finished third in their round-robin group and failed to reach the knockout phase of the NORCECA tournament in Cayman Islands last weekend.

Source

BALMAIN

CENTRAL FC really suck at football chants.
But they were the best professional football team in Trinidad and Tobago for the 2014-2015 football season.
The “Couva Sharks” won the Digicel Pro League title on Tuesday night after getting second half goals from Atualla Guerra (68th minute) and Willis Plaza (87th) near the very end, for a come-from-behind 2-1 victory over North East Stars at Ato Boldon Stadium.
They later celebrated with a season-ending after party at New Settlement ground in Chaguanas.
At the end, England-born Terry Fenwick, Central head coach paid tribute to Serbian Zoran Vranes who was in charge for all but the final three matches, when Fenwick was re-instated after his return from an unsuccessful coaching stint in Belgium. Fenwick was seen motioning for Vranes to join the celebrations.
“There been a great job done here and first and foremost I would like to thank Vranes for the terrific job all season,” stated former England defender Fenwick. “I brought him down out of the stands because he deserved it. He has been here for a long period of the season. I came in, and got them over the line at the end.
“It’s our first league championship and a huge thing for Central FC,”Fenwick added.
“The boys have been head and shoulders above the rest of the league all season and thoroughly deserved it. The rest just come second.”
Central ended the season with 17 victories from 23 matches played and 55 points, at least three more than second-placed W Connection can manage, even if they win their final match against San Juan Jabloteh tomorrow night.
Earlier, dethrone champions W Connection trailed Police in the seventh minute through Makesi Lewis, who shot low down the middle before Connection scored a late winner and a similar 2-1 victory over a highly-competitive Police team—who had both coach Richard Hood and trainer Brian Headley sent off by referee Rodfin Harris.
Hasim Arcia (44th & 90th) got both W Connection goals equalising at 1-1 before the half, scoring in an open goal and then got the winner near the very end, with a low shot to the far corner. Trailing Central by six points with a huge goal-difference, Connection need to win their final two matches of the season by huge margins and hope Stars also beat Central FC.
Connection did themselves no favours, hitting the woodwork three times through Jerrel Britto, Jomal Williams and Neil Benjamin—all of whom also had incredible misses on the night. Police, who fielded one of their best squads of the season, also hit the frame twice and could have won a fiercely contested match as well.
Likewise, when national Under-20 midfielder Neveal Hackshaw tricked T&T national goalkeeper Jan-Michael Williams with a low shot to the near post, the Stars “Grande” led 1-0 after just four minutes.
Afterwards, Stars mainly fell back, apart from industrious work from lone striker Kennedy “Shortman” Hinkson up front and the ever-dangerous Keron Cummings in support. But Central mainly laboured to break the bunker, although having the lion’s share of possession. And Stars goalie Cleon John also came up with at least three saves, including a point-blank flying effort to stop a sure Sean De Silva goal.
Central only equalised in the 68th when Guerra guided the ball to the far corner, and Plaza got some help from his lazy marker who he turned easily and blasted the winner late in the match. Thus began the celebrations and the continuation of the mundane chant–the English influence of owner Kevin Harrison and coach Fenwick, both Britons—quite obvious.

Source

Given that former champions DIRECTV W Connection are still owed some $700,000 of last year’s prize money by the Digicel Pro League, Central FC would do well not to start spending newly-accumulated wealth as yet.
The “Couva Sharks”, Central FC, dethroned W Connection on Tuesday night to become 2014-2015 champions of the local professional football league.
New champions Central FC are due a $1,000,000 pay-out as league winners, former champs W Connection have secured the runners-up take of $300,000 and Defence Force, the third place team, $150,000. Every other team down the ladder gets $130,000.
Interviewed at Central’s Ato Boldon Stadium coronation on Tuesday, Dexter Skeene, the chief executive officer of the Pro League, admitted the former champions are still owed a significant part of last season’s winnings. Given that they have won another $300,000 this season, W Connection are now owed a total one million by the Pro League.
“W Connection have received a part of the million dollar prize,” Skeene said. “They would need to receive another 60 to 70 per cent. ”
W Connection owner and Pro League director David John Williams, was hesitant to respond when questioned.
“We are owed,”John Williams gingerly replied, but admitted that running an expensive pro club had been difficult without the funds.
Skeene said W Connection had gotten part payment from its other revenue sources, but credited Government red tape in releasing the Pro League’s promised subvention as the main reason for the payment delay. However, he said that as a limited liability company, all clubs agreed to do what was right for the overall benefit of the Pro League , including making sacrifices.
“Defence Force also had to wait a while to get their prize,” Skeene stated. “We are now awaiting the subvention for 2013-2014 from the Ministry (of Sport). We have gotten a small fraction of the 2013-2014 subvention, and we as well have an allocation for 2014-2015 approved as well by Cabinet.
“All together it is $6.5 million. We have been promised a certain amount for 2013-2014 which is in the sum of $3.25 million. They have told us soon,” Skeene said.
Skeene further pointed out that since the Pro League was a limited liability company, clubs are the owners, and make decision on revenue and expenditure.
“The clubs are owners of the (Pro) League. When the Board meets, which is a member from all the clubs, we sit down and decide how the finances and expenditure are handled,” Skeene said. “All the clubs understand that sacrifices will have to be made for the benefit of the Pro League, the players, and professional football in Trinidad and Tobago.”

Source