Despite the recent failure to send a team to the recent Pan American Games in Toronto, Canada, the Trinidad and Tobago Karate Union (TTKU) is attempting to establish a foothold in traditional sports in the Pan American Region. That was the message from president Mario Kalloo who is also an instructor and a referee in the organisation.

T&T did have a representative at the 2011 edition of the Pan Am Games, with Kwame Kinsale representing the country at the preliminary kumite (sparring) rounds at the San Rafael Gymnasium in Guadalajara, Mexico. However, in the qualifiers for the Games, the national body only sent a lone representative; kata exponent Zachary Alexander, who was unable to qualify for Pan Am this year. According to Kalloo, Alexander was the only one who was up to standard from the local fraternity.

However, the disappointment of not qualifying for the Pan Am Games has not hindered plans to further develop the sport.

“This week, we have a competition in Nicaragua,” said Kalloo. “Both Dexter Shim (kata coach) and I will be going with the team.”

Currently, the TTKU is the national body for the sport, and is recognised by the Trinidad and Tobago Olympic Committee (TTOC).

And the trip to Central America isn’t the only competition in store for the national team. The national body is also preparing to send athletes to the Pan American Championships in Bolivia at the end of August, another competition in Martinique in September and an open tournament in Curaçao at the end of October.

“All these competitions will be in preparation for the second Caribbean Karate Championships which will be hosted here next year,” said Kalloo.

According to the president, there currently is a promising group of young karateka who have been getting good results recently in overseas competition. “Jesse Gonsalves finished 11th overall in the Male Under 60kg kumite division at the WKF World Championships last year,” he said.

Gonsalves became the first karateka from T&T to compete at the World Championships.

Other noteworthy youngsters include Keiden Joseph and Kate Gordon who are both members of Trinidad Associated Schools of Karate (TASK). “Darell Thomas is also showing a lot of promise,” Kalloo said. “Also Edward Rajmoolie has been showing improvement, he has been the most-improved competitor in the national team.”

Kalloo also said that David Skinner-Ballantyne is also an athlete showing promise. Both Rajmoolie and Ballantyne have been in the national set-up for almost a decade and are still in their twenties. Rajmoolie medalled both in kata and kumite in the recent inaugural Caribbean Championships in Suriname. They both train with the SKIF Kanawaza Group.

Currently, Japan, the host country for the Tokyo Olympics, is lobbying for the sport to become an Olympic event. Kalloo believes based on history, karate will be an event at the 2020 Games. When the Games last were held in Toyko in 1964, judo was included in the Games, and taekwondo was a demonstration event at the 1988 Games in Seoul, eventually becoming an official event in Sydney in 2000.

With the Olympics in consideration, the focus is currently on the younger athletes, and the TTKU intends to host a training camp next week from the 14-16 August. Former world champion, and ten-time Venezuelan champion, Luis Rubio will oversee the camp which will help athletes refine their competition skills.

“We have been working quietly for a long time,” Kalloo said. “And we intend to continue to build a good foundation which is important for the best level of the sport here.”

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Freshly crowned Solo National Men Singles table tennis champion, Dexter St Louis, has urged Trinidad and Tobago’s younger generation of players to take charge of their individual careers if they are intent on becoming professional athletes.

St Louis, who stormed through the rounds to hoist this nation’s most prized ping pong title over the weekend, insists that the sport’s local governing body - Trinidad and Tobago Table Tennis Association (T&TTT A) - is not doing enough to ensure upcoming players receive the right opportunities to further themselves competitively.

The veteran national player and five-time Caribbean Singles champion reflected on his 1992 French Antilles singles victory in Martinique, where after winning the tournament, he was immediately offered a two-year contract to the tune of 80,000 francs by SAG Cestas Club. According to the experienced right-hander, if it weren’t for him being at the top of his game at that particular tournament by himself, he may have still been stuck on the local circuit unable to captialise on opportunities to better his sporting career.

“I think the youths must take charge of their own career,” said St Louis on Wednesday. “They cannot sit down and wait for a table tennis association to do anything for them. They (youths) seem to be still thinking like back in the 80s, when the Association probably contacted another Federation for matches to be played against each other. But to me, these things don’t seem to be happening again here in Trinidad.” The 47-year-old Solo Crusaders representative however, lauded the many talents on show at this year’s National Championships and was pleased to see athletes such as Curtis Humphreys (WASA) and Aaron Wilson show great promise on the local tables. But, St Louis reiterated his opinion that further success would only come if these individual players, among others, begin to take the initiative in furthering their sporting careers and create avenues for themselves in pursuit of personal and professional excellence.

“Do not wait on the Association,” added St Louis. “The main focus is have your dreams, work on it and just keep going. Don’t depend on anyone. The youngsters must take charge of themselves. They must understand that from an early age and take charge of their career destination. It is the only way for growth in your sporting discipline.

Stop sitting down and waiting on people who know less about the game than yourselves.” Additionally, the 2013 French Professional League Men Singles winner, called on the T&TTT A executive to broaden their developmental vision of athletes and to not restrict athletes from exploring new ground and other options of growth.

St Louis and newly crowned Solo National Women Singles champion, step-daughter Rheann Chung, are scheduled to return to France tomorrow. He resumes competition in England from September 13 and will commute between there and France for the next few weeks of European competition.

“Playing professional table tennis is what I do for a living. Coming back and playing in Trinidad is always fun and there is no hard feelings towards anyone. Life goes on. I have a career outside of Trinidad and nothing is a problem for me,” concluded St Louis.

St Louis returned to the Trinidad circuit this year after a sixyear absence and has proven many critics wrong with his mesmerising return.

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TRINIDAD and Tobago will be represented by two pairs when the 2015 NORCECA (North, Central America and the Caribbean) Beach Volleyball Tour resumes today.

After flying the red, white and black flag a few weeks ago in the Pan American Games in Canada, the combinations of Fabian Whitfield and Daneil Williams and Ayana Dyette and Makila Davidson are back in the north American country for the third leg of this year’s circuit.

Whitfield and Williams placed ninth in the previous leg at the end of June in the Dominican Republic after occupying the same position when the series began two months earlier in the Cayman Islands.

The “Toco Boys” have been unstoppable at home this season, as, in addition to winning all ten local tournaments, they led T&T men to the gold medal in the Caribbean Championships in May and a place in the second round of regional qualifying for the Olympic Games in Brazil in August next year.

Davidson, who played in the Youth Olympics in China last year after being involved in the World Under-21 Beach Volleyball Championships in 2013, only joined forced with Dyette in March but they did not win a match in their first NORCECA tournament together in Dominican Republic.

Dyette and Nancy Joseph enjoyed a dream season last year as they were unbeaten from nine local tournaments as well as contesting six of the ten NORCECA tournaments and reaching the quarter-finals of the CAC (Central America and the Caribbean) Games in Mexico at the end of November.

But Dyette was forced to find a new partner when Joseph, a six-time national champ and the country’s most celebrated beach volleyball player, decided to take a break very early in the season.

There are 11 events on this year’s NOECECA Tour and, for the third year in succession, it is scheduled to conclude in this country in the middle of November.

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Mikel Thomas opens his bid for a North American, Central American and Caribbean (NACAC) Senior Championship medal in San Jose, Costa Rica, this afternoon.

Thomas, who captured men’s 110 metres hurdles silver at last month’s Pan American Games in Toronto, Canada, is tipped for top honours in Costa Rica. The Trinidad and Tobago athlete clocked a national record time of 13.17 seconds in the Pan Am Games final. He is the fastest man in the NACAC field.

Michelle-Lee Ahye. Lalonde Gordon, Ayanna Alexander and Emmanuel Callender will also be on show for T&T in today’s opening session.

Ahye and American Barbara Pierre look evenly matched in the women’s 100m. Of the sprinters on the entry list, Pierre has the fastest clocking this year, 10.92 seconds, while Ahye is second at 10.97. Ahye and Pierre share a personal best of 10.85 seconds. Pierre, however, goes into the NACAC women’s century with a competitive edge. She earned bronze at the Pan Am Games in 11.01 seconds. Ahye, on the other hand, ran in a comeback race in the United States on Saturday after more than five weeks away from competition because of injury. She finished second in 11.29.

Reyare Thomas is the other T&T sprinter listed for action in the women’s 100m.

Gordon is expected to challenge for the men’s 400m title. Among the other contenders for the one-lap crown are Dominican Republic’s Pan Am Games champion Luguelin Santos, Costa Rican Nery Brenes and American Marcus Chambers.

T&T will also be represented by Tacumar Sterling in the men’s 400m.

Alexander should be in the hunt for precious metal in the women’s triple jump.

And Callender will be the lone T&T sprinter in action in the men’s 100m event.

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Walcott very proud of Pan Am gold

Keshorn Walcott is proud, very proud of his Pan American Games men’s javelin gold medal.

“All championships are important to me, no matter what the level. I set myself some goals and Pan Am was one of them, so the gold medal was a big achievement for me.”

When he arrived in Toronto, Canada, last month, 22-year-old Walcott was battling an ankle injury and not certain to compete.

“Coming off my last competition in Monaco, I couldn’t walk for two or three days. I had to be whee l-chaired through the airport coming all the way to Canada. The decision was for me not to throw, but me and my harden self, I tend not to listen to too much people. I tend to try to find my answers in my mind.

“I took the risk,” the 2012 Olympic champion continued, “because something told me to take it. We spoke about the ankle before with the doctors and stuff. It seemed like my season was over, so I just told myself I don’t think I could do too much more harm to my ankle, so at least let me achieve one of my goals for the entire year if I have to finish up my season. I think God blessed me. I went out, I took the risk, and now I’m still able to continue.”

Walcott was the class of the field at last month’s Pan Am Games, striking gold with an 83.27 metres throw.

“It means a lot to me, knowing that I haven’t been winning that much since the Olympic Games. That was kind of a confidence boost for me. No matter the level of competition, I’m back on top. Going forward, it will set some standards for me, knowing that I added Pan Am champion to my list.”

Walcott does not relish the limelight, but could not avoid it following his 2012 Olympic triumph. He is grateful there’s no more Walcottmania in T&T.

“It died down a bit, so it’s better now. You still go places and people come at you asking for pictures and what not, but I think I’m handling it okay. And now that I’m a lot more busy, I’m out of the country a lot, it’s easier for me. I don’t have that much downtime to be out. When I train, it’s train, home, different things, so people don’t see me that much. It’s a little bit easier for me now.”

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