This weekend, the Saint Lucia Rugby Football Union (SLRFU) has dispatched four distinct competitive squads across two neighboring Caribbean territories to contest separate elite regional sevens rugby events, marking a critical milestone in the organization’s structured development and selection roadmap for upcoming high-stakes international qualifiers. Two separate squads will compete in the MADA Sevens hosted in the French overseas department of Martinique: a full senior women’s side, a senior men’s squad, and a dedicated male academy development team, facing off against opponents from host nation Martinique, Guadeloupe, metropolitan France, and Canadian touring sides. Simultaneously, the Saint Lucia Select men’s team, known locally as the Rogues, has traveled to Kingstown, the capital of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, to compete in the territory’s annual Independence Sevens tournament against a roster of top regional rugby clubs. The combined touring rosters are intentionally structured to blend seasoned senior veterans, rising academy prospects, accomplished crossover athletes, and eligible overseas-based Saint Lucian players. Per official SLRFU communications, these twin concurrent tournament assignments are a core component of the formal selection process for the national sevens squads that will represent the country at next month’s Rugby Americas North Regional Qualifiers hosted in Trinidad and Tobago, a pivotal qualifying event that feeds directly into the 2027 Regional Olympic Qualifiers scheduled to take place the following June. SLRFU Technical Director Wayne Pantor emphasized that the dual tours form an indispensable pillar of the union’s long-term player development and selection pipeline, noting that the high-level competitive fixtures offer both emerging talents and established senior players invaluable, high-pressure international match exposure while giving the national technical staff a rare, real-world opportunity to evaluate player performance in a live, tournament setting. The overarching goal of these fixtures, Pantor added, is to deepen the national squad’s talent depth and nurture stronger collaborative ties with peer rugby unions across the Caribbean region. The full women’s roster competing in Martinique draws top talent from local domestic clubs: Mary Roberts, Mylene Grunburg, Sennetta Viger, and Renetta Reynolds represent the Whiptails; Marline Cherry and Kera Dornelly come from the Rogues; Electra Marcelle, Shammah Philgence, Allana Paul, and Makeba Alcide compete for the Renegades; while Valencia Matthews from the Northern Academy and Ramani Lewis Emmanuel from the Southern Academy round out the 12-player squad. Pantor will serve as the team’s interim head coach, supported by team manager Janelle Cools. The senior men’s MADA Sevens squad is anchored by a cohort of eight elite academy prospects: Muhammad McLorrain, Clivan Clifford, Malyle Chery, Le Mani Lewis, Jasha Louis, and Dante Asson, alongside southern academy athletes Leslie Frank and Yantez Jn Baptiste. They are joined by Dwayne Nathaniel of Whiptails, plus Jesey Francios, Flavien Gabriel, and Latin Nicholson from the Renegades club. Chantel John leads the side as head coach, with Meraius James filling the team manager role. The dedicated male academy squad fielded in Martinique features Stephen St Rose, Khiege Henery, Shekim Mc Rea, Christian Arthurton, Shadrach Justin, Nathan Emmanuel, Verone Auguste, Merkell Bernard, and Ervin Avril, plus southern academy representatives Calvin Edgar and Junior Deterville. Electra Marcelle steps into the head coaching role for this development side, with Shammah Philgence serving as team manager. Comprehensive medical and administrative support for the Martinique tour is delivered by a fully accredited team: World Rugby-certified physician Dr. Jamaal Springer, physiotherapist Zhenya Allain, SLRFU executive representative Gemma Alfred, and Pantor, who will oversee all on-ground operations. Over in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, the traveling Rogues select squad features Neighman Lascaris, Ethan Phillips, Kevin Joseph, Ernie Joseph, Nico Joseph, Guillem Busquets, Peterson Innocent, and Alex Brown, alongside player-coach Jerry Charles. Three Guyanese-based players with Saint Lucian eligibility — Adrian Hall, Osbert Robertson, and Ronaldo Griffith — complete the 12-player roster. Sixtus Pamphile serves as team manager, with Anne-Marie Mathurin on board as the traveling physiotherapist. For the SLRFU leadership, both concurrent tournaments act as an early, data-driven benchmark of overall player readiness as the union accelerates its multi-year initiative to seamlessly transition high-potential athletes from junior academy pathways into full senior international sevens competition.
标签： Saint Lucia
圣卢西亚
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Donson Stanley, wa nèf an chemin (new king of the road)
The highly anticipated fourth iteration of the Kwéyòl 5K Run unfolded under clear, favorable skies on Sunday, October 18, drawing more than 80 registered runners and casual walkers to a scenic route stretching from Reduit all the way to the iconic Pigeon Island National Landmark, with full organizational oversight from the Saint Lucia Athletics Association. Benefiting from far more clement weather conditions than the 2023 edition, the event saw a modest uptick in participant turnout, culminating in a pair of distinct storylines across the men’s and women’s competitive divisions. In the men’s elite category, Donson Stanley, representing the Soufriere Athletics club, delivered a career-defining performance to dethrone three consecutive former champion Jason Sayers, crossing the finish line with a final time of 16 minutes and 57 seconds. Sayers, who had been vying to secure an unprecedented fourth straight Kwéyòl 5K crown, finished a mere two seconds behind at 16:59, ceding his long-held top spot on the podium. Gerald Charles, competing for the Road Busters Athletics Club, rounded out the men’s top three with a third-place finish clocked at 18:21. The women’s competitive race, by contrast, yielded no major upsets, as Laura Lynn Limery Bernachi of Road Busters Athletics retained her title with a dominant, unchallenged run. A seasoned competitor who previously represented Saint Lucia at the CARICOM 10K, Bernachi posted a winning time of 21:27, finishing well ahead of her clubmate McKayla Olivier, who took second place at 22:42. Danielle Lambert from the Elite Athletics Club claimed the final spot on the women’s podium, crossing the line 10 seconds after Olivier at 22:52. The full field featured a diverse cross-section of participants spanning all age groups, with a total registered entry list that surpassed 100 people, consisting of 53 male athletes and 28 female athletes representing a wide array of local clubs including Abilene Wildcats, Survivors, Morne Stars Athletics, Elite Athletics, and Road Busters. The event also welcomed notable international representation, such as 70-year-old veteran runner Jacques Giacometti competing for Martinique’s Golden Star Athletics, Trinidad and Tobago’s Glen Mahabirsingh, and Italian athlete Edoardo Fauro. Critical on-ground logistical support and route safety oversight were provided throughout the race by the Royal Saint Lucia Police Force and the Saint Lucia Fire Service, ensuring the entire event proceeded without incident for all attendees.
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Michel: Passengers ‘did nothing’ to cause collision
The lead of the official Commission of Inquiry probing the deadly July 18 maritime collision off Saint Lucia’s Anse Cochon has emphatically cleared all passengers aboard the two involved vessels of any responsibility for the fatal incident, which claimed four lives when the Ocean Angel and Cazorla Jr struck each other while travelling in opposite directions during the island’s Carnival weekend.
Commission Chairman Mario Michel used the opening moments of the inquiry’s Wednesday public hearing to directly address mounting public concerns that had surfaced following the first round of witness testimony, ranging from public criticism of witness accounts and commissioners’ questioning tactics to calls for formal legal representation for participants in the proceedings.
Michel made a landmark, pre-final-report ruling that immediately absolved every passenger connected to the incident: the eight survivors who had already given testimony, and the three passengers who lost their lives in the crash, had taken zero actions that contributed to the collision, the subsequent injuries, or the resulting fatalities. He emphasized that the group had simply set out to enjoy the widely celebrated local Carnival weekend, a perfectly lawful and reasonable activity that no one could have reasonably expected would end in disaster. The fourth fatality, the original captain of the Ocean Angel, is being categorized as crew for the scope of the inquiry, hence the separate count of three deceased passengers.
Acknowledging that minor inconsistencies had appeared across the 11 witness statements submitted to the panel so far, Michel noted that such discrepancies are entirely predictable when collecting accounts from a large group of people who experienced a deeply traumatic event. Many surviving passengers continue to grapple with lingering psychological distress, including the grief of losing close friends, harrowing near-death experiences during the incident, and lingering physical injuries from the crash, factors that can easily shape how people recall chaotic, high-stress moments. Michel extended formal public gratitude to all passenger witnesses for stepping forward to share their accounts, stating that the entire nation of Saint Lucia owed the group a profound debt of appreciation for their willingness to help the panel reconstruct a full, accurate timeline of the tragedy.
Michel drew a clear line between passengers and the rest of the people aboard the two vessels, noting that the inquiry’s full scope of scrutiny remains focused on captains, boat owners, and all on-duty crew members. Unlike the fully exonerated passengers, this group remains under active investigation to determine if any of their actions contributed to causing the collision. While he thanked crew and owner witnesses for their participation to date, Michel confirmed the panel retains the authority to recall any of these individuals for additional testimony if new evidence emerges that requires further clarification.
Addressing widespread public pushback over what some observers described as overly aggressive questioning of witnesses by commissioners, Michel acknowledged the rigorous, pointed line of inquiry used by two members of the panel in particular, but rejected claims that the approach was intended to show disrespect to witnesses. He explained that the firm, targeted questioning methods align with standard police investigative protocols, designed to extract unvarnished, factual details about the moments leading up to the crash rather than to intimidate or demean participants.
Michel also addressed public concerns about access to legal representation for witnesses, confirming that every person appearing before the commission had been explicitly offered the option of having legal counsel present to support their testimony. Of the two boat owners involved, one accepted the offer and had an attorney present during their testimony, while the other owner and the testifying captain both formally declined representation even after receiving repeated reminders of their legal right to consult and be accompanied by a lawyer.
The commission is currently in the process of compiling and cross-referencing all submitted evidence from passengers, crew, boat owners, and independent third-party observers to identify the exact root causes of the Anse Cochon collision, and to draft targeted regulatory or safety recommendations that will prevent an identical tragedy from occurring in the future. The series of public hearings is scheduled to resume immediately following Wednesday’s proceedings. -
SJC run the table, Soufriere & Beanefield win in U16 netball
Wednesday’s action-packed slate of Under-16 Netball Tournament fixtures unfolded across two venues in Saint Lucia, delivering standout individual performances and clear emerging hierarchies across competing groups as teams closed in on knockout stage qualification. Matches were split between the indoor Beausejour Gymnasium in the north of the island and the open-air Micoud Court in the southern region, yielding a string of decisive and tightly contested results that have reshaped the tournament’s early standings.
At the Beausejour Gymnasium, Group A frontrunners St Joseph’s Convent (SJC) capped off a flawless preliminary round run with a clinical 18-13 victory over Castries Comprehensive Secondary School (CCSS). The side put on a masterclass of attacking precision, converting every single one of their 18 shooting attempts across the full 60 minutes to lock in three consecutive wins and top the Group A table without dropping a single fixture. Leading the charge for SJC was star goal shooter Xanaiia Emmanus, who delivered a perfect 14-for-14 shooting performance, while supporting goal attacks Skai St Claire and Leyla Sylvester each chipped in with two goals to round out the unblemished attacking tally. For CCSS, goal shooter Valencia Seraphin fought valiantly to keep her team within touching distance, sinking 12 of her 16 attempts, but her side’s inconsistent finishing – with goal attack Luwander Antoine only converting 1 of 6 shots – ultimately left them unable to close the gap in the final quarter.
The second Group A fixture at the Beausejour venue served up a tense, low-scoring thriller, as Leon Hess Comprehensive Secondary School (LHCSS) edged out Entrepot Secondary (ESS) by a narrow 11-10 margin to claim their own strong position in the group standings. Mirroring SJC’s attacking accuracy on the day, LHCSS posted a 100% shooting success rate: goal shooter Alexi Philip landed all seven of her attempts, while goal attack Onyella Enebeli added four unchallenged goals to secure the one-point win. ESS stayed neck and neck with their opponents for the entire duration of the match, anchored by goal shooter Azaria Leon who scored seven goals from 11 attempts, and goal attack Jahnii Charlery who added three more from seven shots, but the side fell just short of a late equalizer as the final whistle blew.
Further south at the Micoud Court, defending tournament champions Soufrière Comprehensive Secondary School (SCSS) sent a clear statement of their title defense ambitions with a dominant 28-13 defeat of Choiseul Secondary. Harriel William topped the scoring charts across all Wednesday fixtures with 15 goals from 23 attempts, while teammates Steffi Paul added nine goals from 19 shots and Kheryss Ferguson contributed four more from seven outings to secure a comfortable win that pulled SCSS clear of mid-table sides in their group. Choiseul’s offense was led by Malia Isidore, who notched 10 goals from 15 attempts, and Kevlyn Fostin who added three more from nine shots, but the side could not keep pace with the defending champions’ fluid attacking movement.
The day’s final fixture saw Beanefield Comprehensive maintain their unbeaten run in the southern zone with a commanding 16-4 away victory over hosts Micoud Secondary. Jerannie Marquis put in a herculean performance to score all 16 of Beanefield’s goals, converting 16 of her 24 shooting attempts, even as her supporting goal attack Annia St Ange was unable to find the back of the net from four separate attempts. Micoud Secondary struggled to generate consistent offensive rhythm on their home court, with Sashaly Martyr scoring three goals from six attempts and Shanequa Jn Baptiste adding a single successful shot to register their side’s total of four goals.
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More than 10 questioned in Hewanorra airport burglary probe
A major burglary investigation is unfolding at the Saint Lucia Customs and Excise office located within Hewanorra International Airport, after authorities discovered a secure vault and a service pistol were taken from the facility, law enforcement officials confirmed. More than 10 individuals have already been questioned as persons of interest as investigators work to unpack the details of the break-in.
According to an official statement released by the Royal Saint Lucia Police Force on Thursday, the Vieux Fort Police Station first received the formal report of the burglary at approximately 2:20 p.m. on Sunday, October 18. Immediately after the report was filed, law enforcement deployed a specialized team from the Criminal Investigations Department to the airport site to launch the probe.
The investigation is moving forward through a coordinated multi-agency effort, bringing together the Royal Saint Lucia Police Force, Saint Lucia Customs and Excise department, and Ports Police. All three entities are sharing resources and information to speed up progress in the case.
“To date, in excess of ten persons of interest have been interviewed, and targeted searches have been executed across relevant locations,” the official police statement read. “The investigating team continues to work assiduously towards bringing closure to this matter and holding any responsible parties accountable.”
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Pierre pays tribute to veteran physician brothers
The Caribbean nation of Saint Lucia is grieving the loss of two pioneering medical specialists, brothers Dr Peter Archer Wilwyn St Rose and Dr St George Bennett Richardson St Rose, whose decades of dedicated service reshaped the country’s healthcare landscape. Prime Minister Philip J. Pierre has publicly honored the pair’s far-reaching contributions, describing their work building up the country’s specialist medical care system as impossible to measure in value.
In an official statement released Thursday, Pierre extended heartfelt condolences to the brothers’ families, fellow medical staff, friends, and the entire Saint Lucian medical community. “Saint Lucia has lost two specialist physicians who contributed significantly to healthcare development over several decades,” the prime minister said.
The elder brother, Dr P.A.W. St Rose, a respected consultant obstetrician and gynaecologist, passed away on October 3, 2026, at the age of 90. His younger sibling Dr Richardson St Rose, a leading consultant orthopaedic, spinal and trauma surgeon, died just eight days later on October 11, at 80 years old.
Dr P.A.W. St Rose launched his medical career in Saint Lucia back in 1967, taking on a post as a district medical officer in the coastal town of Soufrière. He later transitioned to a role in the Accident and Emergency Department at Victoria Hospital, the island nation’s main public healthcare facility. After completing advanced specialist training in the United Kingdom, he returned to Saint Lucia in 1973, and went on to provide top-tier obstetric and gynaecological care to generations of patients until his retirement.
Beyond his direct clinical work, Dr P.A.W. St Rose supported countless women through pregnancy and childbirth, expanded access to critical reproductive health services via Family Planning Clinics across Castries, and mentored a new generation of physicians both in Saint Lucia and at training programs abroad. He also contributed to national health governance, serving on the Saint Lucia Medical and Dental Council, the national Nursing Council, and multiple other official health committees.
Dr Richardson St Rose followed a similar path of service, returning to his home country of Saint Lucia in 1975 after completing specialist training in neighboring Trinidad and Tobago. He took on key leadership roles as chief consultant orthopaedic surgeon for the Ministry of Health and senior surgeon at Victoria Hospital. His clinical work was instrumental in building Saint Lucia’s domestic capacity to treat life-threatening traumatic injuries and complex conditions affecting bones, joints, and the spine, eliminating the need for many patients to travel abroad for urgent care. As a visiting specialist at St Jude Hospital, he brought specialized care directly to patients in the southern region of the island, reducing travel barriers for low-income and rural communities. He also practiced at Tapion Hospital from 1997 through 2023, and ran a successful private specialist practice on Castries’ Chaussee Road for many years.
Across their combined six decades of service, the two brother physicians worked across both the public and private healthcare sectors to build, expand, and sustain the specialized medical services that Saint Lucians rely on today. Their legacy of patient-centered care, medical education, and system-building will continue to benefit the people of Saint Lucia for generations to come.
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Peer Vybz training empowers young people to resist peer pressure
In a proactive new push to address youth substance use, Saint Lucia’s Ministry of Health, Wellness and Nutrition has rolled out the Peer Vybz training initiative, a community-centered program that puts young people in the driver’s seat of prevention efforts. Targeting teens aged 13 to 15, the initiative is designed to equip adolescents with the tools to make healthy, informed choices for themselves, while empowering them to spread anti-substance-use messages to their peers across schools and local neighborhoods.
Spearheaded by the Substance Abuse Advisory Council Secretariat (SAACS), the program was developed directly in response to feedback from young people across the island’s secondary school system. SAACS Programme Assistant Barry Modeste explained that teens consistently voiced a desire to lead prevention conversations among their own age groups, rather than receiving messages exclusively from adult leaders. This direct youth input shaped the entire framework of the Peer Vybz initiative, which centers youth autonomy to reach groups that adult educators and public health workers often cannot access.
“Young people move through social spaces – both formal and informal – that adults simply don’t have entry to,” Modeste noted. “That gives them a unique opportunity to be a consistent, trusted voice that encourages their peers to avoid alcohol and drug use.” Beyond immediate prevention, the initiative also delivers long-term public health benefits: by curbing youth substance use, the program will reduce rates of non-communicable diseases later in life, preserve the potential of Saint Lucia’s young generation, and lay the groundwork for healthier, more thriving communities across the country, he added.
The training curriculum is structured around three core pillars that build skills incrementally for participants. The first pillar focuses on critical thinking and decision-making under pressure, teaching teens how to navigate unwanted pressure to use alcohol or drugs when approached by peers. The second pillar is targeted health education, including deep dives into deceptive marketing tactics the tobacco industry uses to target and recruit young consumers. The third and final pillar, called “empower”, focuses on building participant confidence and leadership skills to help them effectively influence their peers toward healthier choices.
Training sessions combine interactive workshops, hands-on activities, and skills-building exercises led by local well-known personalities including Kiedel Sonny and Kendall Eugene, also known as Scady Dot P. To date, the ministry has hosted training sessions in multiple communities across Saint Lucia, including Vieux-Fort, Dennery and Babonneau.
Participant feedback on the initiative has been overwhelmingly positive. Miandi Bailey, one of the teens who completed the training, said the program gave her valuable preparation to guide her peers toward better decisions. “I learnt a lot from it, and I think it will help me in the future to encourage my peers to do better and to be better people and leaders,” Bailey shared. “When bad influences come my way now, I know how to brush past them and do better.”
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29-member tapeball squad heads to St Vincent
A diverse 29-member group of tapeball cricketers from Saint Lucia is gearing up to travel to St. Vincent and the Grenadines for the second edition of the annual bilateral tapeball series, scheduled to run from October 22 to 29. Organized through a collaborative partnership between the Saint Lucia National Tapeball Association and the St. Vincent and the Grenadines Tapeball Association, the upcoming tour builds on the momentum of last year’s inaugural event, which ended in an anticlimactic tie after heavy rain forced the cancellation of the final deciding fixture, leaving no winner crowned.
This year’s delegation from Saint Lucia includes not just elite senior players, but also the national youth tapeball team, a veterans squad, and essential support staff, creating opportunities for athletes across age groups to compete at the international level. The youth team will take the field for five scheduled matches across the tour, while the veterans side will compete in two standalone fixtures against their SVG counterparts before joining the St. Vincent and the Grenadines Independence Masters Hardball Tournament, where they are slated to play three additional matches.
The tour will wrap up with an exciting showcase match-up between Saint Lucia’s Adventist Premier League representative side and a corresponding team from SVG’s APL, with two final games scheduled to close out the week-long competition. Partial sponsorship for this cross-border sporting initiative is provided by two major local backers: the National Lotteries Authority and Rock Hard Cement, demonstrating private and public sector support for grassroots cricket development in the Caribbean.
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Saint Lucia basketball unveils teams for 2026 AmeriCup 3×3
A new chapter in Saint Lucian basketball is set to be written at the 2026 FIBA 3×3 AmeriCup, as the Caribbean nation formally unveiled both its men’s and women’s national squads this Thursday in advance of the tournament kicking off in San Salvador later this year. Marking a groundbreaking milestone for the country’s basketball development, this will be the first time Saint Lucia fields a women’s team in the history of the continental 3×3 competition, while the men’s squad will make its sixth consecutive appearance, having competed in every edition of the tournament since its launch.
The official team presentation was hosted at the Saint Lucian Ministry of Youth Development and Sports by the Saint Lucia Basketball Federation, held under the unifying national campaign banner: “Two Teams. One Nation. One Mission. Saint Lucia to the World!” Both squads are composed of four players each, bringing together a mix of experienced veterans and rising young talent to represent the island nation on the global stage.
For the men’s side, team selectors prioritized continuity and tested chemistry, leaning on a roster of longstanding mainstays in Saint Lucia’s national basketball program. Brothers Andre and Troy Louison will anchor the squad, joined by returning core players Shamoir Jn Baptiste and Marcian Calderon. All four athletes have deep experience representing Saint Lucia in international competition, giving the team a solid foundation heading into qualifying play. The men have been drawn into Qualifying Draw C, where they will face off against Trinidad & Tobago, Honduras, and the Cayman Islands in their opening matches. A first-place finish in their qualifying pool will secure them a spot in the tournament’s main draw, where they would go head-to-head with regional powerhouses Canada and Mexico.
The biggest story coming out of the team announcement is the historic debut of Saint Lucia’s first ever women’s FIBA 3×3 AmeriCup squad. The inaugural roster features Laurah John, Janeve James, Keri-Anne Lewis, and Kaliyah Stevens. While the team is making its first appearance at the senior continental level, three of the four players—James, Lewis, and Stevens—already bring years of international experience, having represented Saint Lucia in multiple age-group competitions over the course of their young careers.
The women’s squad has been placed in Qualifying Draw B, with opening matches against the Dominican Republic, Cuba, and Guatemala. Just like the men’s side, a top finish in the qualifying round will propel them to the preliminary main draw, where they would face Chile and Mexico for a spot in later knockout stages.
One high-profile absence from the women’s roster is standout player Dasha Eugene. Eugene was originally slated to be named to the squad, but is currently fulfilling another national sporting commitment: she is in Barbados competing with the country’s senior netball team in the Netball World Championship Qualifiers. Just one day before the basketball team’s unveiling, Eugene earned recognition as the most outstanding player after leading the Piton Sparks to a win over the British Virgin Islands in netball competition.
The 2026 FIBA 3×3 AmeriCup will run from October 28 to November 1 at San Salvador’s Plaza Merliot. All six of Saint Lucia’s qualifying matches—three for the women’s team and three for the men’s—are scheduled to take place on October 29, Atlantic Standard Time. The full match schedule for Saint Lucia’s teams is as follows: the women open against the Dominican Republic at 3:10 p.m., followed by a match against Guatemala at 5:50 p.m., and close out their qualifying play against Cuba at 8:30 p.m. On the men’s side, action kicks off against Trinidad and Tobago at 5:15 p.m., followed by a matchup with Honduras at 7:30 p.m., before wrapping up qualifying play against the Cayman Islands at 10:35 p.m.
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National Kwéyòl song competition, Chanté Kwéyòl, is back
After months of anticipation, one of Saint Lucia’s most beloved cultural celebrations is making its return this weekend: Chanté Kwéyòl, the National Kwéyòl Song Competition, will kick off at 6 p.m. this Saturday at Serenity Park, welcoming culture lovers from across the island to a free evening of live music and celebration.
Admission to the event is open to all members of the public, who are invited to come cheer on the competing performers as they vie for the coveted title of 2026 Kwéyòl Monarch. For organizers and attendees alike, this annual gathering has become far more than just a music competition—it is a cornerstone of Saint Lucia’s celebration of Creole heritage, and this year’s iteration looks set to continue that proud tradition.
Caron Tobiere, Executive Director of event organizer Kay Kwéyòl, highlighted what makes the annual competition stand out from other cultural events on the island’s entertainment calendar. “It is the only such event on the Saint Lucian entertainment calendar that brings together different genres of music on one competition stage,” Tobiere explained. This inclusive approach to musical styles, she says, is a key factor that has allowed the competition to thrive and remain relevant across more than a decade.
First established in 2012 by Gordon Charlemagne Leon as specifically a Kwéyòl calypso competition, Chanté Kwéyòl has now entered its 14th year as a staple of the island’s annual Creole Heritage Month programming. What began as a niche competition focused on a single genre has evolved into a broad celebration of all forms of Kwéyòl-language music, welcoming performers from across the country to showcase their talent and creativity rooted in Saint Lucian Creole culture.
This year’s event also marks the fifth iteration of an ongoing sponsorship partnership with Republic Bank, a collaboration that first launched four years ago. Organizers note that the financial backing from Republic Bank does more than just cover the event’s operating costs; it also creates a valuable performance platform for emerging artists who would otherwise lack access to a large public stage to share their work. For both new and seasoned performers, Chanté Kwéyòl remains an unparalleled opportunity to connect with audiences, celebrate their cultural identity, and cement their place in Saint Lucia’s vibrant entertainment scene.