T&T’s 2026 Carifta Games team became the fourth most successful contingent to participate in the annual regional showcase of junior track and field talent.
From April 4-6, this country’s most successful team since 2007 accumulated 35 medals, an achievement only dwarfed by Turks and Caicos 2007’s 36, Bacolet, Tobago 2005’s 37, and the Cayman Islands 2010 record 40 medals.
It’s only the eighth time in the 53-year history of the Games that Team TTO has reached or surpassed 30 medals, an achievement first realised at the end of the Port-of-Spain Games of 1998, spurred to 32 at the Hasely Crawford Stadium in Mucurapo.
This weekend, 80 miles away at a neighbour’s home, the 73-member class of 2026 put themselves firmly in the history books.
On the team’s return to the country yesterday, team manager Cuquie Melville gave the recipe for this year’s success.
“We spent the last few weeks in preparation, physical, mental, and psychological,” she explained, “Because we wanted to make sure we’re getting into our athletes mind to believe in themselves, to believe that they are worth it and that they could go out and perform to their best, not focusing on competition but focusing on themselves and the belief that they could do anything they put their mind to.
“And over the past weekend, our athletes proved that, they proved that they could go out there and they could stand up and compete against the rest of the region,” Melville said.
National Association of Athletics Administrations of T&T (NAAATT) president Ephraim Serrette underlined track and field’s importance in the local sporting landscape.
“Track and field is the sport that continues to deliver; it’s the sport that when we travel, we bring back the medals to T&T, whether it’s regionally or internationally,” Serrette said, noting that the country’s juniors will now turn their attention to the NACAC under-18 and World Juniors.
Minister of Sport and Youth Affairs, Phillip Watts, heaped praise on the young national heroes.
“This is a significant milestone for T&T’s athletics, and it is a testament to your discipline, your sacrifice, your preparation and national pride,” Watts said at Piarco on Tuesday. “You have represented this country with excellence, determination, and heart; you have made T&T proud.”
Medallists
Gold: Nyla Kerr, Seannah Parsons, Aniqah Bailey, Tyrique Vincent, Tenique Vincent, Kiile Alexander, Michal Paul, Jaafari Shaw, Boys Under-20 4x100m relay (Zacheus Charles, Trevaughn Stewart, Makaelan Woods, Kaeden Herbert).
Silver: Jayden Goodridge, Alexxe Henry, Oshea Cummings, Darius Harding, Peyton Winter, Omari Brown, Jael Peters, Jenna-Marie Thomas, Kaori Robley, Boys U-17 4x100m (Christian Parks, Jaquan Douglas, Dario Tavernier, Isaiah Teesdale), Girls U-20 4x100m (Imani Mills, Noemi Theodore, Zada Charles, Alexxe Henry).
Bronze: Tannon Niemeyer, Jquan Douglas, Trevaughn Stewart, Zayne Martin, Tessica Laurence, Kaleb Campbell, Jenna-Marie Thomas, Jaafari Shaw, Seannah Parsons, Chelcia Joseph, Jeremy Samaroo, Jelani Chinyelu, Girls U-17 4x100m (Daija Reid, Jael Peters, Eden Chee-Wah, Xiah Tobias), Boys U-20 4x400m (Omari Brown, Makaelan Woods, Brion Scott, Kiile Alexander), Girls U-17 4x400m (Oshea Cummings, Nyla Kerr, Eden Chee-Wah, Soleil Caruth).
Final medal table
Rank*Team*Gold*Silver*Bronze*Total
1*Jamaica*28*27*16*71
2*T&T*9*11*15*35
3*Bahamas*8*12*10*30
4*Barbados*6*3*8*17
5*Guyana*4*1*1*6*
6*Antigua & Barbuda*2*1*2*5
7*Martinique*2*0*2*4
8*Cayman*Islands*2*0*1*3
9*Grenada*1*4*6*11
10*Saint*Lucia*1*1*2*4
11*Curacao*1*1*2*4
12*Bermuda*1*2*0*3
13*Turks*and*Caicos*1*1*0*2
14*Sint*Maarten*1*0*0*1
15*Dominica*1*0*0*1
16*Belize*1*0*0*1
17*Haiti*0*1*2*3
18*USVirgin Islands*0*1*1*2
19*French Guiana*0*1*0*1
20*British VirginIslands*0*1*0*1
21*Guadeloupe*0*1*0*1
22*St Kitts*and Nevis*0*0*1*1
