With less than three weeks remaining until the 2026 Commonwealth Games kick off in Glasgow, Scotland, the Saint Lucia Olympic Committee (SLOC) has delivered a major surprise alongside announcing its official delegations for two back-to-back regional and global multi-sport events.
In a public press conference held on July 1, SLOC not only confirmed its roster for the XXV Central American and Caribbean (CAC) Games set to run in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic from July 24 to August 8 but also revealed that reigning Olympic women’s 100m champion Julien Alfred will not compete in Glasgow. This announcement reverses earlier expectations that Alfred, who claimed a 100m silver medal at the 2022 Birmingham Commonwealth Games, would return to defend her medal at the 2026 iteration.
Across both events, the size and scope of Saint Lucia’s participation differ dramatically. For the Commonwealth Games, which will run from July 23 to August 2, only three track and field athletes will represent the Caribbean nation—all of whom are male sprinters. Three sports that were expected to field athletes in Glasgow, including netball, boxing, and weightlifting, will not send competitors to Scotland, and swimming will be unrepresented at both the Commonwealth Games and the CAC Games.
The small size of Saint Lucia’s Commonwealth Games track and field delegation stems from strict qualification rules put in place by the Saint Lucia Athletics Association and SLOC. To earn a spot on the Glasgow roster, athletes were required to hit the established performance qualification standard three times across a specified qualifying window, with at least one valid result recorded during the 2026 competitive season. Of all the athletes who attempted to hit the mark, only four managed to meet the standard, and ultimately just three were selected.
Leading the small Saint Lucian delegation in Glasgow is Khailan Vitalis, a hurdler competing for Clemson University. Vitalis will contest the men’s 110m hurdles on July 27, and he enters the Games ranked among the top 16 hurdlers in the Commonwealth this year. He far exceeded the qualification requirements, hitting the standard 11 times over the qualifying window. On July 28, 2024 Olympian and national 400m record holder Michael Joseph will join compatriot Marvric Pamphile, a member of the British Army, in the men’s 400m heats. Joseph hit the qualification mark seven times, while Pamphile managed to hit the required standard three times, all of which came during the 2025 season. Two additional individual competitors will round out Saint Lucia’s entire Commonwealth Games delegation: two-time Olympic sailing competitor Luc Chevrier in the men’s laser event, and Yadhu Urs in men’s golf.
For the larger CAC Games in Santo Domingo, Saint Lucia will field a far bigger contingent, with 26 athletes competing across seven different sports. All three sports that skipped the Commonwealth Games—netball, boxing, and weightlifting—will compete in Santo Domingo, joined by golf, table tennis, sailing, with track and field also represented. Notably, this tournament will mark Saint Lucia’s debut in competitive weightlifting at a multi-sport event, with Raiven Gabriel and Jennica Albert set to make history as the nation’s first weightlifting competitors at this level.
Vitalis, fresh off his run in Glasgow, will be the only track and field athlete representing Saint Lucia in the CAC Games, and he is scheduled to compete in the tournament’s opening rounds on August 4. Boxing will send three competitors: John Didier, Kyghan Mortley and Donaii Cooman, while the table tennis delegation features six athletes, with three men (DeAndre Calderon, Manie Eleuthere, and Leshon Francis) and three women (Shatal Charles, Zarianne Anthony, and Cherese Darcheville) competing.
Saint Lucia’s netball team, ranked fourth heading into the CAC Games, will face a challenging group stage from August 3 to 7, with matches scheduled against Trinidad & Tobago, the Dominican Republic, Bermuda, defending champions Jamaica, and Barbados. There is lingering uncertainty over the full strength of group contenders Jamaica and Trinidad & Tobago, as both nations’ netball squads are also competing at the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow, where the netball competition concludes on August 2—just one day before the CAC Games netball tournament kicks off.
To boost their medal chances, Saint Lucia’s netball roster has been reinforced with high-profile talent, including professional basketball player Megan Nestor and collegiate athlete Dasha Eugene. The squad also features Jermia Martial, named Most Valuable Player at the recent Coast To Coast tournament, and Naija Ferdinand, captain of Saint Lucia’s Under-16 national team. The full 12-player roster is completed by Lizzy Dorvius, Aaliyah Estephor, Kiana Nelson, Lerkisha Felix, Melika Destang, Patrina Wilson, rising young schoolgirl shooter Neriah Charler and Roxanne Snyder.