media_artricles :: 2016

Jehue warns athletes not to neglect school

NESTLE TRINIDAD and Tobago Limited has injected a sum of $100,000 towards the staging of the 2016 Milo West Games, which will take place on Tuesday at the Hasely Crawford Stadium, Mucurapo.

The launch of this year's Games was held yesterday at the neighbouring Marriott Hotel, on Invaders Bay.

And this year will mark 29 years that Nestle has been involved with the Games, which serves to highlight the budding track and field athletes in the North West region of Trinidad.

Rae-Ann Clement- Harper, Nestle's Manager of Consumer Marketing, had a message to the young athletes who were in attendance at the Hotel's Grand Riviere Room.

"To the young athletes, we wish you all the best next week," she said. "We look forward to you, one day, becoming true Olympians but, today, we salute you as being true Milo champions." One of the many athletes who competed at the Milo Games was national champion and 2013 World 400-metre hurdles champion Jehue Gordon.

Delivering the feature address at the launch, Gordon said, "it was only when I was in Standard Five that I made it all the way to the National Championships for the boys 800 metres." He continued, "and who said my last year was not my best year.

I defeated the national champ, in the boys 800m, from Tobago.

"I must say thanks to Nestle for the 29 years they have invested in the youth of Trinidad and Tobago, giving them a chance that a lot of our parents did not have." The 24-year-old spoke in glowing terms of the impact the Games had in his career thus far.

"Milo Games definitely opened up my eyes, to believe in myself, and to realise that I had the talent to run," he said. "Now I'm a World Junior champion, a World champion and the national record holder over 400m hurdles, not withstanding the fact that I also got my degree while being a professional athlete, graduating with First Class honours.

"I know most of you will think that sports is all, but it's not. There is going to come a time when you're going to retire, an injury may pop up that may be career or life-threatening, or you may just not want to pursue sports any more.

What are you going to do to pursue a living? That is why school is so important. Don't use sports and training as an excuse to not do your homework or to go to class, but use it as an optimiser to your life." Journalist and administrator Kelvin Nancoo, who is part of the Games committee, revealed a dream he recently had, and is hopeful that it comes to fruition.

"Sometimes when I dream it always comes to past," he said. "I dreamt that, for the first time in the history of the Milo Games, we had the Minister of Sport and the Minister of Education at the opening of the Milo Games.

"It's just a dream but my dreams usually come true. So principals and supervisors, be aware of my dream," he ended

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