Page 18 - TRINBAGO2023 MAGAZINE

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Certainly, the sister isle’s more laid-back culture and It is envisioned that venue will be renamed the Black
way of life and the open arms, the 'all ah we is one Rock Beach Sports Facility which will also cater to
family' mantra has also helped to attract the beach soccer and beach tennis among other
international competitors and visitors. But while the beach-oriented activities and sports.
‘‘Bago charm - a perfect blend of the local hospitality,
sun, sea and fun - makes for the ideal tourist So the legacy of those venues and the institutional
destination, the sister isle also possess the capacity to administrative memory and resources used to
support a sports tourism drive. execute the hosting of the CYG will hopefully inspire
more of the island's athletes, to strive for sporting
Against this background and as an integral part of the excellence like footballer Dwight Yorke, the late boxer
Trinbago 2023 CYG bid, Tobago staged four of the Claude Noel, and athletes Joanne Lucas and
seven sporting disciplines, with several facilities given an Olympic medallist Lalonde Gordon to name a few.
uplift to not only benefit some of the 1000 athletes from
71 nations and territories across the Commonwealth Meanwhile, the Tobago arm of the organising
that arrived on the Rpeublic’s shores but also to bolster committee will also be seeking to showcase their
the Tobago sports tourism product into the future. cultural heritage to the Commonwealth visitors in a
Tobago-styled closing ceremony at the Pigeon Point
Major upgrades inside and outside the longstanding Heritage Park that is meant to mirror the lavish cultural
multi-purpose Shaw Park Cultural Complex were made display organised by the Ultimate Events Limited at the
to that venue, including the expansion of the outside opening ceremony at the Hasely Crawford Stadium.
football pitch which facilitated the rugby sevens
discipline of the CYG. The Fast 5 netball competition The Commonwealth community should be put on
was also hosted on the refurbished indoor sports floor standby that Tobago has been punching, continues to
at the Park. and will continue to punch, well above its sporting
weight.
For the triathlon event, Turtle Beach in Buccoo, Mt.
Irvine, the traditional site of the popular Rainbow Cup, As Lord Kitchener related in the song..."Come, leh we
the THA spruced up that area and brought it up to go, leh we go to Tobago/
international standards for the swim/bike/run discipline. That paradise, found by Robinson Crusoe/ And it is
said, it's the land of tomorrow/
And at the Black Rock Beach Facility, a major overhaul Princess Margaret say, "Come Tobago for holiday." /
was performed to make the venue an eco-friendly one Now the whole world say, "Come Tobago for holiday."
and to enable the hosting of the beach volleyball …And sporting play!
competition.