U-17 TOURNEY SHOULD OPEN EYES ABOUT MISSED OPPORTUNITIES

The Mayor of Montego Bay Charles Sinclair is already seeing the benefits of hosting the CONCACAF Under-17 qualifiers. He estimates that the country may have earned about US$1 million dollars so far. Does the Government now see the enormous importance sports plays in this country and why its such a tragedy that we still do not have a formal policy governing how we can use sports to bolster the public purse?

For the last three years I have been calling for the Minister of Sports to deliver the national policy on sport but to date we have not seen or heard anything. Since the successes of our athletes in Beijing, China, Jamaica has had the opportunity to use our leverage to generate much-needed revenue for Jamaica, create jobs and set Jamaica on a path to make the industry of sport one of the most viable industries in Jamaica. But alas, like it has done on so many other occasions, the Government has dropped the ball.

Now that Mr Sinclair has seen the light perhaps he will help open the eyes of the other blind politicians who continue to ignore the great potential that sits at their doorstep.

Jamaica has recovered somewhat from the embarrassment of failing to have the Trelawny Multi-Purpose stadium ready in time for the competition. So far the tournament has been a moderate success and has exposed the potential this country possess to host tournaments of this nature in the near future.

More than 400 beds have been filled and the international broadcast would have brought viewers in to what Jamaica has to offer. Imagine the potential gold mine we are sitting on if we can convince sporting organisations that Jamaica can be a hub for many more types of international sporting events?

The benefits would be priceless.