Rio can Unleash Jamaica's Sporting Potential

The Olympics have come to a close  and Jamaica has performed relatively well in comparison to previous Olympic years. Most importantly and the topic I would like to address is Leveraging Sport in Jamaica to improve economic viability.

Case 1: Gymnastics

Toni-Ann Williams became the first athlete to compete for Jamaica in women's gymnastics at the Rio 2016 Olympics. Even though Toni-Ann did not progress to the final she has singlehandedly created an avenue for future gymnasts from Jamaica to compete in future Olympic games. the problems therein would lie in coaching as well as facilities for training gymnasts in Jamaica.

Case 2: Aquatics

Yona  Knight-Wisdom became the first athlete to compete for Jamaica in the 3M Springboard men's diving competition. He like Toni-Ann wasn't born in Jamaica but has Jamaican parentage.  Additionally, Alia Atkinson 27-year-old Jamaican Breaststroke swimmer placed 8th in the finals of the women's breaststroke. The Aquatics program may have a bright future but a major problem or issue to address is the education of the fans. Watching the diving competition many Jamaican did not  understand what the divers' were being graded on. Unlike gymnastics jamaica does the facilities to train Olympic quality swimmers and divers, the overarching problem is the heavy dependence of track and field. Boys and Girls Champs going forward could have an Aquatics component.  

Case 3: Distance Track and Feild

This year Jamaica entered athletes in the women's 3000M steeplechase as well as men's 5000m race, not much attention has been given to distance running in Jamaica as well as the development of Feild events such as Javelin, PoleVault.

Case 4: Training Track Athletes from other countries

Wayde van Niekerk won gold at the RioOlympics and broke the men's 400m record running from Lane 8. One thing he attributes to his victory is his training in Jamaica alongside Triple Gold medalist (100m 200m and 4x100m) Usain Bolt. This presents an opportunity for Jamaican track clubs as well as the Sports Policymakers to market Jamaica a sports development destination. Athletes and Sponsors may be willing to pay to train in Jamaica alongside Jamaican athletes to improve their own programs. 

Case 5: Athletes Allegiance

One astonishing find in this year's Olympics particularly in the men's 100m, the semi-finals presented 7 athletes who were born in Jamaica while only 3 actually represented Jamaica, because of competitiveness in Jamaican track and field athletes opting to switch allegiance presents further opportunities if properly leveraged for both the benefit of the athlete as well as the country. 

There is money to be made from Sport in Jamaica, not just for athletes but for the country on a widescale.

#CollegeEconomist