Basseterre, St. Kitts, March 20, 2020 (DBSKN) — The Development Bank of St. Kitts and Nevis partnered with the St. Kitts and Nevis Athletics Association by sponsoring the national team to take part in this year’s Carifta Games in Bermuda in the period April 10-13, but the games have now been postponed as a result of the on-going coronavirus pandemic.
“I want to thank the Development Bank of St. Kitts and Nevis for taking the initiative for donating towards our team for the Carifta Games that were slated for the 10th to the 13th of April, which since then have been postponed by the Bermuda local organising committee,” said President of the St. Kitts and Nevis Athletics Association, Mr Delwayne Delaney.
Word coming out of Bermuda on Friday March 13 stated that the Bermuda National Athletics Association had announced that 2020 Carifta Games had been postponed due to the coronavirus outbreak. The decision was taken after Antigua and Barbuda, Bahamas, and the Cayman Islands would have announced their withdrawal from the competition.
Local athletic meets, the Ram’s Inter Primary School Athletics Competition scheduled for March 21 and 22, and the TDC Inter High School Championships scheduled for March 27-29 that would have been used as trial games to select a national team for Carifta Games were also postponed.
“We want to take all necessary steps in ensuring that athletes, patrons, stakeholders, everyone is safe during this time and we will continue to keep our ears to the ground in terms of when we would resume normalcy as it relates to critical sports meets moving forward,” said Mr Delaney.
When on Wednesday March 18 Mr Delaney learnt that the Development Bank would also have taken some measures to protect its clients, staff and the general public on a whole, he said: “We understand the seriousness of the coronavirus and I want also to commend the Development Bank for the steps that they have taken in ensuring to keep not only their customers safe but also locals on a whole in putting their necessary measures,”
According to Ms Vernitha Evelyn, Development Bank of St. Kitts and Nevis’ Marketing Officer, in the wake of the coronavirus/COVID-19 outbreak, out of abundance of caution the bank on Tuesday March 17 issued a public notice requesting individuals who would have returned from overseas within the last 21 days and who would wish to conduct any business with the bank to do so either by phone or email.
The Development Bank official said that in the advent of the coronavirus outbreak, which has been declared a global pandemic by the World Health Organisation, the Development Bank has fully endorsed actions taken by the Bermuda National Athletics Association to postpone Carifta Games, and the Ministry of Youth, Sports and Culture in St. Kitts and Nevis to postpone two local athletic meets.
“The Development Bank of St. Kitts and Nevis firmly believes that the future of this country, or any other country for that matter, lies in the hands of the youth,” said Ms Evelyn. “By sponsoring the St. Kitts and Nevis national team to take part in 2020 Carifta Games was one of the many ways that the Development Bank empowers our youth.”
Ms Evelyn added: “We are appealing to our athletes to stay focused and remain positive during this trying moment, because once the coronavirus/COVID-19 outbreak is behind us we want them to bring back medals from the 2020 Carifta Games when a new date is announced and the games are held.”
