In the aftermath of Trinidad and Tobago's record four-medal Olympic haul, local athletes are already in line to benefit, with Petrotrin announcing a $2 million Athletic Development Programme.

At a media conference at Petrotrin's Queen's Park West office building, chairman Lindsay Gillette yesterday announced the new endeavour, which he stressed is for up-and-coming athletes, and not T&T's elites. A maximum eight track and field athletes, four swimmers, four boxers and four cyclists will receive assistance over the next four years.

But there are some conditions under which athletes will not only qualify for funding, but keep receiving it.

The athletes must have a "high participation in sport" and "realistic chances" of reaching the Rio 2016 Olympics, as well as being deemed "deserving of assistance".

They must also have "track records to suggest that they are on the verge of greatness" and "likely to achieve success".

Team sports are not included in the sponsorship, while academic performance and behaviour are also criteria being considered for athlete assistance. Persons receiving Government assistance will also be ineligible.

The funds will be disbursed in tranches of $500,000 per year, and athletes will be monitored to ensure they continue to meet the Programme's criteria. That works out to $24,000 per year for each athlete, to be delivered through their respective sporting associations.

"We are confident that we are putting in place a practical programme which will provide the support where it is most needed--at the individual level," Gillette said following his announcement.

Gillette said although the initiative is a new one, Petrotrin's efforts to assist athletes are not.

"We don't want to just give out money (to athletes); we want to support them in everything possible." The former T&T senator said athletes require things like nutrition and proper gear, and that funding is usually only forthcoming after big performances.

"People wait for an athlete to get a gold medal or a silver or a bronze medal," Gillette reasoned, "before they begin supporting or are ready to get some support in the future, when in fact what an athlete requires is a lot of support before the actual achievement."

Gillette also took issue with a recent letter to the editor that called for London 2012 Olympics 50-metre freestyle finalist George Bovell to retire, pointing out that it takes a lot of effort and sacrifice to compete at a high level.

"For George to swim sub-22 (seconds), which is 21.77, from a 22.04 (clocking)...requires two years or three years of training on a continuous basis, giving up all your parties, training morning, training noon, training night, sometimes (and) going to different championships. Those (improvements by) points of a second require a lot of dedication."

Also at the media conference were National Association of Athletics Administrations (NAAA) president Ephraim Serrette, Amateur Swimming Association of T&T (ASATT) assistant secretary Neal Marcano, T&T Cycling Federation (TTCF) president Rowena Williams and T&T Amateur Boxing Association (TTABA) president, Cecil Forde. The sporting representatives thanked Petrotrin for their assistance, while Serrette said it would allow them to extend their current athlete support efforts.

"We have athletes who benefit from the (Ministry of Sport) elite funding, and this would allow the NAAA to reintroduce a programme that we had started a couple of years ago, called 'Poor but Talented Athletes'," Serrette said.

"This is going to allow us to reintroduce this programme using the criteria to select athletes, male and female, to benefit from such an initiative."

By Kern De Freitas

Source: www.trinidadexpress.com