The National Olympic Academy of Barbados, the educational arm of the Barbados Olympic Association Inc. (BOA) today launched a Primary Inter-School Sport and Art Competition at the BOA’s Wildey Headquarters.
Director of the Academy, Dave Farmer told the gathering of media, primary school students and teachers, that the competition seeks to promote the synergies between sport and art and was just one of the programs that is administered by the Academy which emphasized and promoted the values of Olympism – excellence, friendship and respect.
“In keeping with the goals of the Olympic Charter our programs are generally educational in nature, and attempt to reach out to all sectors of the sporting fraternity: athletes, coaches, administrators, mangers, national federations, sports associations and clubs,” Farmer said.
Among the programs listed by the Director were: Athlete Support Grants, Team Support Grants, Development of National Sport Structure, Technical Courses for Coaches, a Basic Sport Administration Course for National Federations and an Advanced Sport Management Course.
In terms of the sport and art competition, Farmer said that sport is an expression of art in its purest form and the students are encouraged to use their creative talents to express their ideas of sport in a visual medium of their choosing.
Principal of Hilda Skeene Primary School who is also the President of the Association of Public Primary Schools Principals, Ivan Clarke said that he welcomed the Academy’s new initiative, which blends sports, art, and academics. He said that for too long sports have been sidelined as mainly recreational when in fact sport is life.
“Olympic values are taught every day in the classroom and there must be full integration of sports within the primary school. We need to think of our coaches not as coaching, but teaching. The days of only brawn in sports are out, and we also must have brains as well. We need thinking individuals and we need for the children in the primary and the secondary schools to see how sports can be a profession. The Olympic Academy must, for this reason, be commended for this initiative,” Clarke said.
Primary Schools must confirm their participation in the competition by January 30 at which time the schools will each be given a voucher for $100 in art supplies. The final entries must be submitted to the Academy by March 15, and the winners will be announced by the end of April. School prizes will include art supplies and sports equipment while individual prizewinners will receive tablets and cash prizes.
