By TENAJH SWEETING

Tribune Sports Reporter

tsweeting@tribunemedia.net

THE cancellation of the Bahamas Association of Independent Secondary Schools (BAISS) track and field meet is now a thing of the past as the inter-school competition is back on the athletics calendar for March 6-8, according to reports.

Last week, the notable athletics event was reportedly called off due to scheduling issues which involved the closeness of the CARIFTA Trials slated for March 15-17. Nonetheless, officials are rolling with the originally scheduled date for the high school championships.

Drumeco Archer, Bahamas Association of Athletic Associations (BAAA) president, was vocal last week about his desire to see the meet go on and was pleased to see the situation come to a resolution.

“What we have always maintained is that we only facilitate this process and from the inception wanted to be able to come up with a time and date that would be convenient for the conference and all conferences.

“It wasn’t that we were imposing any dates on anyone. I am happy that BAISS really has saved the day by understanding that they have the right to choose any date and they have chosen a date that works best for them. We now have an opportunity to have a really great championship meet,” Archer said.

According to sources, the meet was initially shelved because it was scheduled for one week before the CARIFTA Trials which is mandatory for top athletes hoping to solidify their spot on Team Bahamas. The BAISS reportedly shied away from the March 6-8 date previously as a result of some schools not wanting their athletes to compete due to risk of injury. With the original date now set in stone, the BAAA president expressed his view on the situation.

“However coaches, schools and physical education teachers manage the resources of the athletes in the lead up to CARIFTA is a matter of personnel and coaching and coordination of the two major groups. My recommendation is that there is an opportunity for there to be timed finals then that certainly would have the best result for all parties involved. That would eliminate the rounds and seed the athletes based on their times,” he said.

The BAISS track and field meet has served as a major local sporting event for decades. The long-standing rivalry between St Augustine’s College and Queen’s College is always the topic of conversation around February and March. The Big Red Machine reeled in their third straight track and field championship last year and it was their fifth victory of the last eight meets. The Comets reigned supreme in 2015 when they dethroned the champions and followed it up with wins in 2016 and 2019.

After parents and alumni expressed displeasure in the event’s cancellation last week, Archer said it was good for track and field fans to see the meet go on.

“I am elated that BAISS has met the demands of its followers, the alumni and all of the track and field fans. I am very happy to see that the BAAAs has an event on its calendar that is of national class and people are really looking forward to that meet taking place,” he said.