Building on the success and lessons of its inaugural edition, the Barbados Olympic Association Inc. (BOA) recently launched the second cohort of its Youth Project Podium (YPP) initiative at the BOA’s Headquarters, reaffirming its commitment to nurturing the island’s emerging athletic talent.
The newly selected cohort features 11 promising athletes, aged 14 to 16, representing five core disciplines: judo, sailing, squash, swimming, and triathlon. Spanning the 2026–2028 Olympic cycle, YPP delivers a strategically engineered, holistic support system designed to guide these young competitors along the high-performance pathway, positioning them for potential representation at the Youth Olympic Games and Commonwealth Youth Games.
Supported through grant funding from The Amarone Charitable Trust and Panam Sports, approximately $200,000 is being invested into this second phase. The programme delivers a robust, multidisciplinary framework covering sports medicine, strength and conditioning, physical therapy, podiatry, sports nutrition, mental performance training, personal branding, and public speaking – fostering success both on and off the field. Each participant will also undergo baseline evaluations followed by six- and 12-month reassessments.
Addressing attendees at the launch event, BOA Secretary General Erskine Simmons highlighted how the programme’s evolution reflects a deliberate, highly focused approach to high-performance development.
“Our first Youth Project Podium taught us a great deal about the needs of developing athletes and the importance of supporting them beyond competition and results,” Simmons said. “We have taken those lessons to strengthen this second edition. By maintaining a more focused cohort, our goal is to build a clear, sustainable pipeline from youth development through to high performance and elite international sport.”
Echoing these sentiments, Kendia Brathwaite, Senior Operations Officer at the BOA and YPP Project Coordinator, emphasised that the initiative’s refined structure was directly shaped by feedback from athletes, parents, coaches, National Federations, and sports professionals.
“There are no shortcuts to becoming a high-performance athlete,” Brathwaite stated. “Youth Project Podium represents an important step in that pathway, preparing our young athletes to transition into higher competition levels, secure collegiate opportunities, and progress toward elite representation. Today is a continuation of a long-term vision and an unwavering commitment to investing in the future of Barbadian sport.”
In his remarks, Trustee of The Amarone Charitable Trust (ACT), David Csumrik said the organisation’s involvement reflects its commitment to identifying, supporting, and developing sporting talent in Barbados. Expressing ACT’s pleasure in supporting both the pilot and current phase of the initiative, Csumrik encouraged the athletes to work hard, embrace the experience, and enjoy their journey.
Reinforcing the necessity of this integrated model, Dr. Carl Ward, Vice President of the Barbados Sports Medicine Association (BSMA), noted that early intervention is critical for athlete retention.
“Talented athletes can sometimes disappear from sport because injuries are not properly recognised or managed, while others experience setbacks due to inadequate nutrition or insufficient mental preparation,” Dr. Ward explained, as he confirmed that the BSMA’s remains committed to providing specialised clinical care for the new group of YPP athletes.
Throughout the 2026–2028 cycle, the athletes will focus on a structured development path, gaining the technical skills, holistic support, and personal resilience they need to reach their full potential. The 2026-2028 YPP Athletes are:
Judo: Deann Walton
Sailing: Savannah Stuart
Squash: Lenna Hamati
Swimming: Victor Ashby, Amiya Harrison, Jaiya Simmons and Mihael Sobers
Triathlon: Matthew Briggs-Legall, Alexis Lashley, Laila McIntyre and Zindzele Renwick-Williams