By WALTER ALIBEY Wednesday, January 9 2008

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FORMER 400 metres and 4x400 relay runner, Olympian Edwin Skinner, left is acknowledged by the NAAA at their end of year function when he was inducted ...

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PLANS are underway to ensure that Trinidad and Tobago are represented by more and better athletes at this year’s Beijing Olympics.

This he said will lead to an increase in the number of medals won previously at the Games.

Ephraim Serrette, president of the National Amateur Athletic Association (NAAA) made this revelation at the Awards and CAC Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony at the Crown Plaza in Port-of-Spain on Saturday.

He said that public expectation of greater track and field success is evident, especially in this Olympic year, and therefore the NAAA has already introduced a database which will enable them to track athletes’ performance at the club level.

He added that the NAAA has also established a central clinic where athletes can assess and monitor existing and possible injuries. The 2008 Olympics get underway August 8 in the Chinese capital and Serrette warned that his association can no longer operate as a volunteer institution.

Although thankful to government for providing financial assistance to sporting organisations, Serrette pointed out that sport today is a big business and therefore there is need to operate in such a manner to achieve stated goals.

“Athletes are now professionals, they live from the sport, they hire and pay coaches, agents, managers and all professionals,” Serrette said.

“The point is that track and field is now a professional sport and we can no longer carry on by administering our sport as a volunteer institution,” Serrette said. The former national sprinter admits that to achieve returns on investment as government has been alluding to, the NAAA is required to employ professionals to get the job done.

According to Serrette, this initiative will also call for constitutional reform which he said is long overdue in the NAAA.

In delivering his address the former national sprinter listed the achievements of the organisation over the last year and advanced his call for a home for track and field in Trinidad and Tobago. Serrette wants the facilities at the Manny Ramjohn Stadium, Marabella be upgraded to accommodate their prospective headquarters.

He contends also that his organisation can, as well, be given the opportunity to manage the south based facility.

He informed the large turnout that his association has made progress over the past year. He also noted the relocation of the association office from the Mt Hope Sciences Complex to No 55 Southern Main Road, Curepe. This became possible after hospital officials requested the Ground Floor of Building 16, which housed the NAAA secretariat. According to Serrette, plans are also in place to dedicate a meeting/audio-visual room which will be used to facilitate committees and other small group gatherings, training sessions, seminars.

There will also be an office where archives are kept and research can take place.

In 2007 the NAAAs also conducted numerous seminars, workshops and coaching courses which was aimed at enhancing the development of the sport.