Caribbean
Sports Round-up
Published Saturday, March 15th, 2008
Adam Hyde is not sure if he is the first Jamaican to reach
Kilimanjaro's highest peak, Uhuru, but he certainly took on
Africa's tallest mountain. "There's a place on the way up called
Jamaica Rocks," the tall mountaineer said. "The guides said it
was named so because a Jamaican reached that far, looked up,
said 'blood &%$' and walked back down." That was one of the
lighter moments on an arduous, painful trek to the first of
Hyde's Seven Summits which saw three of his five fellow climbers
fall by the wayside over the five-day slog to the top.
There is no
climbing involved in reaching the roof of Africa, unlike the
other large continental mountains which require the usual
mountaineering kit of ice axes, crampons and ropes, but it's
every bit as tough as its foreign cousins. Hyde says a few
of his team members were affected by altitude sickness and had
to be taken back down. He said to reach the top you just
really struggle to take one step after another - after every
five or six meters you have to catch your breath - at the top of
Kilimanjaro there's half as much oxygen as there is at sea level
and you just have to focus on moving on a step at a time.
He said that the few who were left in the team reached the
summit they hugged and he cussed a few Jamaican bad words. He
took pictures of the fantastic views of Tanzania on one side and
Kenya on the other. Kilimanjaro is the tallest
free-standing mountain rise in the world. The
highest of Kilimanjaro's three peaks (Uhuru) was first reached
by Marangu army scout Yohanas Kinyala Lauwo, German Hans Meyer
and Austrian Ludwig Purtscheller, on October 6, 1889.
About 15,000 people attempt to climb the mountain each year.
About 40 per cent succeed in reaching the peak.
Caribbean Regional umpires' association
president Hartley Reid wants the West Indies Cricket Board (WICB)
to take action against the Jamaica and West Indies captain Chris
Gayle for his outburst against the umpiring in last weekend's
Carib Beer Series match between Jamaica and Barbados.
Gayle said bad decisions against his Jamaica team were "blatant"
and described the umpiring in the game as "terrible for sports"
after they lost a crucial match by 17 runs at Kensington Oval in
Barbados. But Reid, head of the West Indies Cricket
Umpires Association (WICUA), says Gayle's comments are
punishable by the laws of cricket and he should face
consequences. Gayle was distraught after the Jamaicans lost a
close match to Barbados by 17 runs and criticized umpiring
decisions that went against them. Dalton Holder of
Barbados and Terence Birbal of Trinidad and Tobago were the two
umpires that stood in the top-of-the-table, fifth-round match
contested at Kensington Oval and Gayle felt their performance
was less than satisfactory. Gayle mentioned Holder's
performance as being "terrible". But Reid said Gayle was
out of line in his comments, especially naming an official in
his charge against the umpiring.
(photo:
WICB President Julian Hunte) The West Indies Cricket Board (WICB)
has vowed to fight any attempts by the International Cricket
Council (ICC) to reduce their team to that of a second tier
test match nation. This, after the ICC indicated
that it may create a two tier system which it says would
increase the competitiveness of test cricket. This would see
the top seven nations cut off from the bottom three with a
system of promotion and relegation between the two groups.
Under the current rankings, the West Indies would be in the
bottom division alongside Zimbabwe and Bangladesh. WICB
president Julian Hunte said the board will not allow the ICC
to relegate their team to a second division. Mr. Hunte
said in a statement that in most of the cricket playing
countries of the world, the West Indies was the team that
cricket fans like most after their national team. The
‘Windies’ have declined dramatically since the likes of Gary
Sobers, Clive Lloyd, Viv Richards, Michael Holding, Malcolm
Marshall and Curtly Ambrose helped make them Test cricket's
leading team from the 1970's to the start of the 1990's.
Former West Indies wicket keeper Jeffrey Dujon said that the
decline of some teams including the West Indies, has led to
the ICC's decision and he is not surprised that the West
Indies will be relegated. The WCIB will be meeting with ICC
officials at their headquarters in Dubai the week of March
17 to discuss the matter. 
Cristiano
Ronaldo struck in the 75th minute to deny Derby a
sensational draw - and send Manchester United top thanks to
Arsenal's draw with Middlesbrough. Wayne Rooney crossed for
Ronaldo to volley home and spare United's blushes. Ronaldo
hit the post in the first half but United had debutant
keeper Ben Foster to thank for twice keeping out Kenny
Miller just before the break. After scoring the goal,
Ronaldo skipped clean through, only to be denied by former
United team-mate Roy Carroll. Another goal would have been
harsh on Derby, who reacted to a 6-1 drubbing by Chelsea
with a performance of admirable resilience against the
league's top scorers. United, meanwhile, were hoping to
bounce back in style after going out of the FA Cup to
Portsmouth - a match in which they spurned numerous chances.
Jamaican National footballer Shavar Thomas
said he has shaken off a frustrating episode in Jamaica, which
delayed his return to his professional club in the United States
for several weeks. Thomas finally re-entered the US on February
28, more than three weeks after Jamaica's Febuary 6 friendly
international against Costa Rica, when he was a member of the
Reggae Boyz squad, and long after Chivas USA expected him to
rejoin the California-based team. He is currently back in preseason camp and
fully participating in the team's preparations for the start of
2008 US Major League Soccer (MLS). But Thomas admitted he is
still a bit behind his teammates. The delay in Thomas' return to Chivas USA
stemmed from his US work permit, which expired on December 31,
2007. He had been in Jamaica since mid-December waiting for a
petition from the MLS, which he needed to apply for the permit
that allows him to play professional football in the US. After receiving the petition in January,
Thomas said he was unable to secure a prompt interview
appointment with the US embassy in Jamaica. The earliest
available date was May 28. The MLS season begins late March. Following stepped-up communications involving
officials from the MLS and Chivas USA, Thomas and the embassy,
the player was finally allowed into the embassy for an interview
on February 25. His successful application led to the
acquisition of the permit a few days later and his eventual
departure. While in Jamaica, the former Excelsior
Manning Cup star and national youth captain trained with his
hometown club Arnett Gardens of the Cash Plus National Premier
League.