Carib Scope

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  • BBA Tells GOB: “Level the Playing Field”

    BBA Tells GOB: “Level the Playing Field”

    As key closed-door negotiations with Belize’s Department of Transport got underway on Wednesday, the Belize Bus Association (BBA) has doubled down on its ultimatum: unless the government addresses longstanding inequalities in industry compensation, private bus operators across the country will suspend all service starting this coming Monday.

    In a press statement ahead of the talks, BBA President Phillip Jones painted a grim picture of the current financial strain facing private operators, saying most firms are “running on fumes” after months of absorbing skyrocketing fuel costs that have turned every route into a losing proposition. “These operators have continued to sustain loss after loss,” Jones emphasized, noting that a planned shutdown scheduled for the previous Monday was called off only to give the association one last chance to appeal directly to Transport Minister Dr Louis Zabaneh.

    Jones stressed that industrial action is not the desired outcome for any of the association’s members, but mounting financial pressure has left operators with no other options if their demands are not met. “My members are far more serious than me… this is the last thing they want to do to the commuters who rely on our services every day,” he added.

    At the heart of the conflict is a 5-cent per mile disparity in public mileage compensation between private operators and the state-owned National Bus Company (NBC). Currently, private firms receive just $0.14 per mile for their routes, while the NBC collects $0.19 per mile for the same type of service. The BBA’s core demand is straightforward: level the playing field by standardizing the rate across all public bus operators.

    Jones argued the request is entirely reasonable, saying “Let the operators get the same fare that the NBC is receiving; it’s 19 cents for them. So why can’t it be 19 cents for us too? If we don’t come to a positive resolution on the request that we had asked, then transportation won’t be able to be provided by the operators on Monday coming.”

    Compounding the dispute are additional grievances from private operators, who allege widespread victimization by authorities. The association claims that private buses are routinely locked out of official bus terminals, forcing drivers to load passengers on public sidewalks in unsafe and inconvenient conditions.

    The government has already signaled it is unwilling to meet the BBA’s rate demand. Earlier this week, Minister Zabaneh told local outlet News 5 that the requested rate adjustment is “off the table.”

    Only eight of the BBA’s more than a dozen member operators were permitted to attend the closed-door negotiations, which also included Transport CEO Chester Williams. As of Thursday morning, no details have emerged on progress or outcomes from the talks, leaving thousands of daily commuters across Belize bracing for widespread disruption to public transit starting Monday.

  • Dominica has seized thousands of ammunition and over 160 firearms since 2023, says Blackmoore

    Dominica has seized thousands of ammunition and over 160 firearms since 2023, says Blackmoore

    At a three-day intergovernmental security roundtable held in early April 2026, Dominica’s Minister for National Security Rayburn Blackmoore has unveiled significant progress in the island nation’s fight against illicit arms trafficking, revealing that local law enforcement has seized more than 160 illegal firearms and nearly 4,000 rounds of ammunition since 2023.

    Speaking to attendees on April 8–10 at the event hosted by Dominica’s Ministry of National Security and Legal Affairs, in partnership with the United Nations Regional Centre for Peace, Disarmament and Development in Latin America and the Caribbean (UNLIREC) and the CARICOM Implementation Agency for Crime and Security (CARICOM IMPACS), Blackmoore detailed the results of sustained enforcement operations: between 2023 and the time of the announcement, officers recovered 3,929 rounds of ammunition, 161 unregistered firearms, and took 121 individuals into custody on related charges.

    The national security minister extended public recognition to the frontline personnel leading these counter-arms efforts, singling out the Commonwealth of Dominica Police Force and the island’s Customs and Excise Division for their commitment, bravery, and consistent operational excellence. He highlighted that representatives from these agencies were in attendance at the roundtable to coordinate next steps for regional and local security cooperation.

    Blackmoore emphasized that eliminating the threat of illegal weapons, which he described as a fundamental danger to Dominica’s social stability, cannot be achieved through isolated action. “If we are to realize success in dealing and combating that threat to our civilization, it’s going to require a collective endeavor going forward,” he told the gathering.

    The current enforcement push is part of a broader coordinated regional effort to implement the Caribbean Firearms Roadmap, a targeted strategy designed to curb illegal gun trafficking across the Caribbean basin, reduce community violence, and strengthen public safety infrastructure for all member states.

    Beyond reviewing progress on anti-trafficking operations, attendees at the inter-institutional roundtable also discussed plans for the construction of a new regulated explosive storage facility in Dominica, a key infrastructure upgrade to improve public safety and weapons management on the island.

  • Inheemse organisatie waarschuwt voor rechtsongelijkheid

    Inheemse organisatie waarschuwt voor rechtsongelijkheid

    On April 16, Het Inheems Kollectief Suriname (IKSur), Suriname’s leading indigenous advocacy organization, issued a blistering rebuke of the starkly divergent sentencing demands put forward by the country’s Public Prosecution Service (OM) in the high-profile Pikin Saron violence case, arguing that the lopsided punishments confirm long-held allegations of unequal treatment under Suriname’s rule of law.

    The case traces back to violent unrest that broke out in the Pikin Saron indigenous community on May 2, 2023. During the unrest, two indigenous residents — Martinus Wolfjager and Ivanildo Dijksteel — were killed by responding police officers. Forensic pathology examinations later confirmed that the two men posed no immediate threat to officers and were not attempting to flee when they were shot; both were already on the ground when they were struck by gunfire at close range, confirming the use of excessive, unwarranted force.

    Seven police officers are currently on trial for their roles in the deadly incident. On February 3, 2026, the OM submitted a sentencing demand calling for a 12-month suspended prison sentence with a three-year probation period for all seven officers, allowing them to remain free throughout and after the trial. In a stark contrast, just weeks earlier on March 24, 2026, the OM reaffirmed its demand for a 15-year unconditional prison sentence for multiple indigenous defendants in the same case during an appeal hearing, maintaining the original harsh sentencing request from the first trial even after a lower sentence was initially handed down.

    IKSur has condemned this disparate treatment as “impossible to reconcile with the core principle of equal justice under law”, describing the lopsided sentencing demands as both “shocking” and “unacceptable”. Beyond the sentencing gap, the organization also raised a series of serious concerns about the investigation and broader trial process. Immediately after the 2023 violence, community leaders called for an independent international forensic pathology investigation to avoid bias, but this request was denied despite accessible international expertise, leaving the probe entirely in the hands of domestic authorities. The trial itself has also shown clear procedural inequalities, IKSur claims: indigenous suspects were arrested swiftly and held in pre-trial detention for extended periods, while the implicated police officers have remained free on bail throughout the entire investigation, which has proceeded at a far slower pace.

    Beyond procedural issues, IKSur emphasizes that the entire case fails to address the root causes of the 2023 unrest, focusing narrowly on the violence itself without acknowledging the decades of unaddressed grievances driving indigenous activism in Suriname. For years, indigenous communities have pursued peaceful advocacy to secure legal recognition of their traditional land rights and protection of their ancestral territories. These repeated calls have been consistently ignored by national authorities, the organization says, allowing unregulated logging, gold mining, and agricultural concession operations to continue expanding into traditional indigenous lands — often without the free, prior, and informed consent of local communities. These activities have left severe environmental damage in their wake and created major public health risks for indigenous populations.

    “What happened in Pikin Saron was an eruption after years of ignored warnings,” stated IKSur chair Captain Lloyd Read. The organization warned that ongoing systemic disregard for indigenous communities’ legitimate demands, paired with clear dual standards in the justice system, is fueling rising social tensions across Suriname and poses an existential threat to the credibility of the country’s rule of law.

    “Without justice, there is no trust. Without trust, there can be no rule of law,” IKSur said in its statement. The organization has issued a public call for greater awareness and urgent collective action from Suriname’s civil society, independent judiciary, and the broader international community to address the inequalities exposed by the Pikin Saron case and advance long-overdue justice for indigenous peoples.

  • SVG Sailing Week declared a resounding success

    SVG Sailing Week declared a resounding success

    St Vincent and the Grenadines has cemented its reputation as a world-class sailing and adventure tourism hub following the wrap-up of the hugely successful SVG Sailing Week 2026, an event organizers and participants alike are calling one of the most energetic and widely attended editions in decades.

    This year’s regatta delivered impressive growth across every competitive class, drawing hundreds of regional and international sailors and sailing enthusiasts to the Caribbean nation, while injecting new energy into local communities and small businesses along the competition route. The 9-day event spanned multiple venues, starting with youth-focused junior championship races off the main island of St Vincent before culminating in a dramatic final regatta off the coast of Bequia, blending tight on-water competition, genuine camaraderie between sailors, and joyful celebrations of local Vincentian culture.

    Participation numbers more than doubled compared to 2025, with 24 yachts officially registered for this year’s event, up from just 11 in the previous edition. Prime Minister Dr Godwin Friday even joined sailors for the event’s official prize-giving ceremony, highlighting the national government’s strong support for the growing regatta.

    The Government of St Vincent and the Grenadines, via the Ministry of Tourism, Civil Aviation, and Sustainable Development, has celebrated the 2026 event as a resounding success and clear proof of the rapid expansion of the country’s fast-growing sports tourism sector.

    “SVG Sailing Week 2026 is a shining example of what can be achieved through vision, collaboration, and hard work,” said Dr Kishore Shallow, Minister of Tourism, Civil Aviation, and Sustainable Development, in remarks following the event. “In addition to showcasing our country’s stunning natural beauty and rich maritime heritage, this event delivered tangible economic benefits for our people across local communities. As a government, we remain fully committed to investing in initiatives like these that create opportunities, drive tourism, and position St Vincent and the Grenadines as a leading destination on the global stage.”

    The ministry extended formal gratitude to every stakeholder that contributed to the event’s smooth execution, including the SVG Sailing Association, corporate partners, volunteer crews, local host communities, and regional collaborators. Special recognition was reserved for the event’s organizing committee and technical teams, whose relentless dedication ensured seamless operations across all race venues and social events.

    Shallow added, “The outstanding success of SVG Sailing Week this year would not have been possible without the tremendous support of our many stakeholders. I also commend the management and staff, alongside the steering committee, for delivering a first-rate event within a remarkably short planning window. This achievement is highly encouraging as we look ahead to even greater editions in the future.”

    More broadly, the 2026 SVG Sailing Week reflects the current government’s renewed strategic focus on revitalizing flagship national events and unlocking new pathways for inclusive economic growth across the country. Officials have reaffirmed their commitment to building on this year’s momentum, strengthening cross-sector partnerships, and expanding the scale and reach of future editions to draw even more visitors and competitors to the region.

    For sailing fans planning ahead, next year’s event is already locked in: SVG Sailing Week 2027 is scheduled to run from March 21 to 29, marking another chapter in the Caribbean nation’s emergence as a top global sailing destination.

  • Antigua And Barbuda Hosts Caribbean Travel Marketplace 44 During Culinary Month In May

    Antigua And Barbuda Hosts Caribbean Travel Marketplace 44 During Culinary Month In May

    The dual-island Caribbean nation of Antigua and Barbuda has announced that it will play host to the 44th edition of the Caribbean Hotel and Tourism Association’s (CHTA) Caribbean Travel Marketplace, one of the region’s most influential tourism industry gatherings, from May 12 to 15, 2026. What makes this announcement particularly notable is the event’s intentional alignment with the country’s popular annual Culinary Month, a weeks-long celebration that puts the destination’s fast-growing food culture front and center for visitors and industry stakeholders alike.

    This strategic pairing of the major industry trade show and the culinary festival creates a one-of-a-kind experience for the hundreds of regional and international travel buyers and suppliers expected to attend the 2026 Marketplace. Attendees will not only be able to conduct core business networking, negotiate partnerships, and explore new tourism product offerings, but also get a first-hand immersive deep dive into Antigua and Barbuda’s vibrant, rapidly evolving local food scene.

    The nation’s rising profile as a culinary tourism hub has already earned it international recognition: just last year, Antigua and Barbuda took home the 2025 title of “Caribbean’s Best Emerging Culinary City Destination” from the World Culinary Awards. This accolade cements the country’s growing reputation as a go-to spot for food-focused travelers across the region and beyond, adding extra weight to the decision to co-locate the 2026 Marketplace with Culinary Month.

    Colin C. James, CEO of the Antigua and Barbuda Tourism Authority, emphasized the unique value that this combined event will deliver. “Culinary Month gives food lovers from across the globe an unparalleled chance to experience our distinct cuisine, our rich cultural heritage, and the warmth of our people firsthand,” James explained. “By aligning the Caribbean Travel Marketplace with our festival, we’re giving our industry partners the opportunity to connect with our destination in a truly authentic, memorable way that goes far beyond a typical trade show setting.”

    To integrate the culinary celebration seamlessly into the Marketplace schedule, event organizers have planned a full slate of special food-focused experiences open to attending delegates. Running from May 3 to 17, overlapping both the lead-up to and duration of the 2026 Marketplace, the destination’s annual Restaurant Week will offer island-wide prix-fixe menus at more than 50 participating local restaurants. Menus will be available at three accessible price points: $25, $50, and $75 U.S. dollars, giving delegates options to fit every schedule and budget. A curated series of small, local cookshop demonstrations led entirely by native Antiguan and Barbudan chefs will also be on offer, highlighting traditional cooking techniques and local ingredients.

    For delegates looking for a structured evening food experience, the Culinary Crawl, a dine-around tour showcasing the thriving restaurant scene along Antigua and Barbuda’s scenic south coast, will be open for booking on May 14, right in the middle of the Marketplace. Delegates are actively encouraged to build these culinary experiences into their official event itineraries to get the most out of their visit. Updated information on participating restaurants, special event details, and booking instructions for Culinary Month activities will be published regularly on the official Antigua and Barbuda Tourism Authority website as the 2026 event approaches.

  • Russia Launches Massive Drone and Missile Strike on Ukraine, Killing 18

    Russia Launches Massive Drone and Missile Strike on Ukraine, Killing 18

    Just days after a limited 32-hour Orthodox Easter ceasefire initiated by Moscow, Russia has unleashed one of the most extensive combined drone and missile assaults on Ukrainian territory in 2026, leaving at least 18 people dead — including one child — and wounding more than 100 others across multiple regions, Ukrainian national and local authorities confirmed to CNN on Thursday.

    According to reports from Ukraine’s State Emergency Service and local administrative bodies, the 118 recorded injuries came as Russian projectiles destroyed and damaged dozens of civilian residential buildings, igniting large blazes in communities across the country. The Ukrainian Air Force documented that over the 24-hour period ending early Thursday morning, Russian forces launched a staggering 659 unmanned aerial drones alongside 44 conventional and ballistic missiles. The assault was carried out in sequential waves, with strikes hitting major Ukrainian population centers including the capital Kyiv, Kharkiv in the northeast, the southern Black Sea port of Odesit, central Dnipro, and southeastern Zaporizhzhia.

    Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha characterized the large-scale attack as a deliberate act of terrorism against civilian populations. He noted that the assault deployed nearly 700 aerial assets alongside dozens of ballistic and cruise missiles, with civilian infrastructure and residential areas serving as the primary targets, in an official post published to the social platform X. Sybiha also classified the attack as a clear war crime, stressing that all individuals responsible for planning and carrying out the assault must be held legally accountable for their actions.

    In Kyiv, the assault claimed four lives, among them a 12-year-old boy whose remains were recovered from the rubble of a fully collapsed residential building. The State Emergency Service recorded at least 48 injuries in the capital alone. A chief executive of a local Kyiv construction firm confirmed that one strike detonated within close proximity of an under-construction residential complex, wounding six on-site workers, two of whom remain in critical condition and were undergoing emergency surgery as of Thursday.

    Regional casualty reports confirm three fatalities and 34 injuries in the central Ukrainian city of Dnipro, while at least one civilian was killed in the southeastern Zaporizhzhia region. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky issued a formal condemnation of the attack in the hours after the barrage, accusing the Kremlin of doubling down on its commitment to full-scale war. He emphasized that the unprovoked overnight assault on civilian targets proves Moscow does not qualify for any easing of the international sanctions imposed over its full-scale invasion of Ukraine, and confirmed reports of fatalities in Odesa, Kyiv and Dnipro.

    The attack marks a rapid end to the temporary ceasefire that Putin announced ahead of Orthodox Easter, a 32-hour pause in hostilities that came in response to an earlier proposal for a holiday ceasefire put forward by Zelensky.

  • Calls for growth, inclusion take centre stage at Junior Jazz opening

    Calls for growth, inclusion take centre stage at Junior Jazz opening

    The 2026 edition of Junior Jazz, Saint Lucia’s flagship youth creative event, officially launched Wednesday at the scenic Sandals Halcyon Beach Resort, where organizers and local leaders centered two key themes: the untapped potential of the island’s creative economy and the urgent need for long-term, systemic support for young emerging artists, alongside the event’s proven power to foster inclusion for neurodiverse young people.

    As founder of Dove Productions, the organization behind the initiative, Colin Weekes opened his remarks by celebrating Junior Jazz’s proven track record as a transformative launchpad for young creative talent across Saint Lucia. Calling the annual gathering a “brilliant event” that opens doors for youth who dream of creative careers, Weekes used his address to push stakeholders across government, private industry and the non-profit sector to look beyond the immediate success of the annual gathering and plan for long-term sustainable growth.

    Drawing from his own decades-long journey in the creative sector, Weekes shared a personal anecdote to illustrate the persistent structural gaps that still hold young Saint Lucian creatives back. From the time he was a primary school student, he said, his only ambition was to work behind the camera, but when he graduated from St Mary’s College, there was no clear pathway or professional infrastructure to help him turn that passion into a viable livelihood. Today, he argued, that gap has not been fully closed.

    Weekes questioned whether local and national stakeholders have built the robust, year-round support systems needed to help young creatives build lasting careers. Annual events like Junior Jazz are a critical starting point, he emphasized, but they are not enough to sustain a growing creative industry. “The creative industry cannot be left on its own,” he stated, pushing for more consistent programming, training opportunities, and professional development opportunities spread throughout the year instead of isolated, once-a-year events. “We need more than a gig. We need avenue, we need platform,” he said.

    Beyond access to programming, Weekes called for broader efforts to legitimize creative careers as viable, full-time professions. A key part of this work, he noted, is building financial infrastructure that allows creatives to access loans and other financial support using their skills as collateral. “We need to be able to go to the bank and say, I am a creative and I want to use my skill to have a livelihood,” he explained, framing financial access as a critical step toward building a sustainable, independent creative sector in Saint Lucia.

    Following Weekes’ remarks, Castries Mayor Geraldine Lendor-Gabriel offered a deeply personal perspective on the event’s impact, tying Junior Jazz’s mission to autism awareness and social inclusion for neurodiverse young people. As a parent of a child on the autism spectrum, Lendor-Gabriel shared how the Junior Jazz platform and access to formal music training transformed her son’s developmental journey.

    When her son first started exploring music, he began learning the keyboard, but through the opportunities provided by Junior Jazz, he has since mastered multiple instruments, including bass and tenor pan. “This event and music made that difference in my son’s life,” she said, crediting both the program’s supportive community and her son’s innate passion for his rapid growth.

    The mayor emphasized that her son’s success is not an isolated case, noting that countless other neurodiverse children on the spectrum hold untapped creative talent that is often overlooked in traditional academic and social settings. For young people who struggle to thrive in conventional education environments, initiatives like Junior Jazz provide a critical, welcoming space to build skills, confidence, and a sense of belonging. “There are a number of other children who are also on the spectrum who also have that gift,” she said, positioning Junior Jazz as a vital model for inclusive youth development across the island.

  • Antigua and Barbuda Strengthens Sweet Potato Research Under Regional Climate-Resilience Project

    Antigua and Barbuda Strengthens Sweet Potato Research Under Regional Climate-Resilience Project

    A landmark four-year regional initiative focused on upgrading sweet potato cultivation and safeguarding critical crop genetic diversity across the Caribbean is accelerating progress, bringing together agricultural stakeholders from five nations through a dedicated practitioner network led by technical experts. The Next Generation Sweet Potato Production in the Caribbean Project, led by the Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture (IICA), operates in partnership with national agriculture ministries in Antigua and Barbuda, Jamaica, and Saint Lucia, alongside the Caribbean Agricultural Research and Development Institute (CARDI), to address longstanding gaps in regional food security and climate adaptation.

    As part of the project’s capacity-building roadmap, recent collaborative training with the International Potato Center (CIP) brought 73 agricultural experts from academic institutions, government technical agencies, and both public and private agricultural sectors together for a hybrid program of theoretical instruction and hands-on field work. The training centered on building core skills for identifying unique sweet potato varieties, documenting their morphological traits, and cataloguing these genetic resources for future preservation and use.

    Participants began their learning journey with five interactive virtual modules, where they mastered the 30 globally standardized descriptors used to catalog key sweet potato characteristics, ranging from leaf morphology and vine growth patterns to root structure and other genetic traits. After completing the theoretical portion, practitioners applied their new skills in on-the-ground field exercises across four participating member countries, working alongside lead specialists like Dr. Robles to validate identification and characterization practices in Jamaican growing sites.

    For small island nations across the region, the project is already delivering measurable expansion of local genetic resources. In Antigua and Barbuda, for example, agricultural officials currently have 73 distinct sweet potato accessions formally documented. Through the project’s partnership with CIP, an additional 19 unique varieties will be added to the national collection, significantly broadening the country’s sweet potato genetic base to support more resilient breeding programs.

    Beyond expanding collections, the initiative prioritizes equipping local agricultural professionals with the specialized skills needed to maintain, utilize, and protect these irreplaceable genetic resources long-term. It also works directly with smallholder and commercial farmers to support adoption of high-yield, climate-resilient sweet potato varieties that can withstand rising temperatures, erratic rainfall, and other climate impacts increasingly affecting Caribbean agriculture. Ultimately, these coordinated efforts are targeted at strengthening both food and nutrition security across all participating nations, where sweet potatoes serve as a staple carbohydrate and key source of dietary nutrients.

    The project receives core funding from the Benefit-sharing Fund of the International Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture, administered through the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), with additional co-financing support from the European Union. Moving forward, the four-year initiative will continue to deepen regional collaboration, facilitate cross-border knowledge sharing, and strengthen the growing Community of Practice dedicated to advancing sustainable, resilient sweet potato production across the Caribbean.

  • COMMENTARY: CARICOM and the New Normal in International Politics

    COMMENTARY: CARICOM and the New Normal in International Politics

    The Caribbean Community (CARICOM) finds itself navigating one of the most challenging periods in its institutional history, as long-simmering regional tensions amplified by shifting global geopolitics push the 15-nation bloc to its breaking point. When St. Kitts and Nevis assumed the rotating six-month chairmanship of CARICOM’s supreme governing body, the Conference of Heads of Government, this past January, it inherited a bloc fractured by deepening divides over core foreign policy principles at a time of unprecedented global upheaval.

    Under the terms of CARICOM’s founding constituent treaty, the Conference of Heads of Government holds ultimate decision-making authority over the bloc’s agenda, with the rotating chair tasked with advancing collective regional priorities for their term in office. For Prime Minister Terrance Drew, who leads St. Kitts and Nevis and serves as the current chair, the weight of regional fragmentation has shaped every dimension of his leadership from day one. The bloc is currently split along sharp lines over divergent responses to the so-called “Trump Corollary” to the Monroe Doctrine, a high-stakes U.S. foreign policy framework that has created a months-long diplomatic impasse within CARICOM.

    This schism comes as the entire global international order undergoes a seismic transformation — a shift not seen on this scale since the collapse of the Soviet Union and the end of the Cold War, which erased the bipolar global system and paved the way for the decades-long unipolar era that is now drawing to a close. For small developing states that make up CARICOM, this global realignment has created acute pressure to align with competing great power blocs, straining the collective diplomatic coherence the bloc has spent decades building.

    The majority of CARICOM member states have approached the Trump Corollary with deep suspicion and caution, anchoring their positions in the bloc’s long-standing foundational principles: commitment to multilateral dialogue, respect for sovereign international cooperation, and independence in foreign policy decision-making for small states. But a smaller faction of members has broken ranks to offer unapologetic, full-throated support for the U.S. framework.

    The most high-profile split came in response to the recent escalation of tensions between the U.S.-Israeli alliance and Iran, which only recently settled into a fragile, uncertain ceasefire after weeks of spiraling direct conflict. Trinidad and Tobago drew widespread controversy across the region when it openly aligned with Washington’s position on the conflict, while neighboring Barbados took an early, contrasting stance, publicly calling for all parties to exercise restraint as Middle East tensions reached a boiling point. For Drew and his chairmanship, bridging this deepening foreign policy divide and restoring CARICOM’s collective diplomatic voice will be the defining test of his term, as the bloc grapples with whether it can maintain unity amid a rapidly changing global order.

    This report was originally published by the Jamaica Gleaner on April 16, 2026.

  • Nayoka Clunis improves hammer throw national record

    Nayoka Clunis improves hammer throw national record

    CHARLOTTESVILLE, U.S. — Jamaican track and field star Nayoka Clunis has etched her name deeper into the country’s athletics record books, breaking her own women’s hammer throw national record to claim gold at the Virginia Challenge on Friday. Clunis delivered a winning throw of 72.03 meters, outperforming her prior national best mark of 71.83 meters set just one month prior in Arizona this 2025 outdoor season. Impressively, the Jamaican qualifier notched three separate throws that cleared the 70-meter barrier on the day, putting her inside the world’s top 20 rankings early in the outdoor competitive calendar. Beyond Clunis’ standout performance, a host of other Jamaican athletes competing at U.S. collegiate track and field meets across the country turned in career-best results over the same competition Friday.

    At the University of Florida’s Tom Jones Memorial, Purdue University’s Britannia Johnson surged to a fifth-place finish in the women’s hammer throw with a new personal best of 56.49 meters, beating her previous top mark of 55.64 meters. Her twin sister Britannie Johnson also competed, notching a throw of 52.39 meters. Clemson University’s Brandon Pottinger took top honors in the men’s high jump competition at the meet, clearing 2.12 meters to claim the win.

    At the same time, University of Texas sprinter Carleta Bernard clocked a wind-aided 22.68 seconds in the invitational women’s 200-meter race, with wind speeds registering at 2.9 meters per second, above the allowable threshold for official records. Her teammate Abigail Wolfe posted a valid 23.38 seconds with a 0.7 meters per second wind in the same event.

    Over at the Bill Schmidt Invitational, Fabrienne Foster of the University of North Texas secured second place in the women’s hammer throw while breaking her own personal best by a wide margin. Foster threw 54.82 meters, beating the 51.84-meter personal best she set just one weekend earlier at a meet hosted by Texas A&M University. She surpassed her old career best three separate times during Friday’s competition.

    Alliyah McNeil turned in a strong all-around performance at the meet, taking gold in the women’s high jump with a clearance of 1.81 meters, followed by a silver medal finish in the women’s long jump with a 5.86-meter effort recorded in neutral wind conditions. Trezeguet Taylor claimed the women’s 200-meter title with a wind-aided 23.82 seconds (3.3 meters per second), while Tahj Hamm placed fourth in the men’s 200-meter with a 21.19-second clocking, also wind-aided at 2.8 meters per second.

    At the Aggie Invitational hosted by North Carolina A&T University, Shakiel Dacres of East Carolina University took the top spot on the men’s discus throw podium with a 52.39-meter winning effort. Rounding out the week’s results for Jamaican athletes, Obrian Bowen of Umpqua Community College won the men’s triple jump at the Raider Invitational, hosted by Southern Oregon University, with a season-best leap of 14.02 meters.

    The photo accompanying this report captures Clunis reacting to her performance at the 2025 World Athletics Championships in Tokyo, Japan, taken by photojournalist Garfield Robinson on September 14, 2025.