CONTRIBUTIONS OF SPORTS TO DEVELOPMENT

Overview

Since the Amerindians, sports have been enjoyed by Caribbean people. Both the Maya and Tainos

would engage in a ball game called Batos (by the Tainos).

The Europeans brought various sporting activities that were a part of their tradition. The enslaved

were not allowed to participate in sports as it was considered a luxury. Colonization and creolisation

have led an appreciation of these sports as well as them becoming a part of Caribbean culture.

These sports include –

Horse Racing

Cricket

Soccer/Football

Track and Field

Tennis

Swimming

Sports are not only restricted to leisure and entertainment but also contribute to the Caribbean region

on many levels. These levels include –

Boosting economic development through the Generation of Income

Supporting human development in the form of improving Health and Fitness

Educational Opportunities

Discipline and Morale

Development of a Caribbean Identity

Sport Tourism

International Recognition
 Generation of Income

Sporting activities have become a major contributor to the economies of Caribbean States by

providing income through the collection of taxes, spectator fees and sports venue rental and from the

marketing and sale of sporting merchandise.

Taxes

 Contributed to government income through the collection of taxes and tariffs from sporting

goods coming into the country.

 Sporting professionals and athletes contribute to government coffers and infrastructural

development of the Caribbean via direct PAYE and other forms of income taxes.

Employment and Earnings

Employment
 Employment of coaches, officials who
monitor sporting events and members of
oversight and regulation bodies.
 Widespread employment of workers
who maintain and run sporting activities
before, during and after sporting events.
 Many earn a living by entering some of
the new and highly sought-after sport
related occupational fields, e.g.,
physiotherapy, sports medicine,
nutritionists, and promoters.
Earnings
 Athletes earning from participation in
various events.
 Money coming in from spectators
through the staging of national sporting
activities.
 Governments and private owners of
sporting arenas and complexes earn
when their venues are used for events.
 The owners and operators of sports
wellness facilities also earn greatly from
both professional and recreational
athletes by charging fees for the use of
their facilities. These are increasingly in
demand resulting from the success if
Caribbean athletes. E.g., Spas and
Gymnasiums.
Media and Advertising

 Caribbean media outlets earn large sums of money every year from broadcasting and

advertising sporting events. Caribbean television media buys the rights of popular sporting

events and air them exclusively on their station to secure viewership and earn from

advertising spots bought around the airing of these events.

 Sports Merchandising and endorsements have become fast-growing industries in the

Caribbean especially with the increasing popularity of athletes from the region. Caribbean

sports stars such as Usain Bolt are signed to major beverage and sporting goods brands. This

type of advertising generated more income for athletes than taking part in sporting events.

Tourism

The success of Caribbean athletes and teams in international sports has in turn drawn in international

competitions and spectators from abroad. These combines with the emerging niche tourism market

have created a relatively new source of income for the region.

 Health and Fitness

 Lifestyle diseases can cause a strain on the health sector of the Caribbean states. The cost of

treatment of these diseases can drain any health ministry’s budget. Sporting activities form

part of the programmes that help to ward off lifestyle diseases (diabetes, high blood pressure,

heart disease).

 Good health forms one of the bases of human development as it is necessary for full

development of the individual. Health problems caused by inactivity and lack of exercise can

negatively affect productivity and economic growth because when people are ill it can slow

their performance as well as lead to their absence from work.

 Sports have helped the programmes of many rehabilitation centres that use sport to heal

accident victims or victims of violent crimes. This has helped productive people who suffer

from crippling illness or physical and mental setbacks.

 Sporting activities have been a pillar in the educational system of many Caribbean countries.

Physical Education has helped introduce children to the importance of physical activity and

the mental and physical benefits of engaging in competitive sports.

 Educational Opportunities

 Doing well in a sport at the school level can open opportunities for students to earn

scholarships and bursaries to attend Ivy League universities in foreign countries. These

scholarships have given Caribbean athletes the opportunity to access tertiary education and

expand their exposure to new forms of coaching and help them transition into being

professional athletes.

 New courses and educational opportunities have opened in many fields in the Caribbean as a

result if the contribution of sports. E.g., Physiotherapy degree now offered at UWI.

Discipline and Morale

 Sport is often viewed as a character-building activity because of the required commitment to

succeed, along with the need to perform in the spirit of fair play.

 Teamwork is a major part of all sports. Being a part of a team teaches athletes to respect the

rules of the sports in which they are competing, the style and abilities if their teammates and

the professional advice of coaching staff.

 The discipline and respect produced by sport can be used to instil similar attitudes and

approaches among the young. Several schemes have been established to promote sports and

its benefits among the young and to deter them from risky or anti-social behaviour.
 Sport Tourism

 Sports fans and even athletes visit to watch or take part in major sports events held in the

Caribbean. These visitors spend money on food, entertainment and souvenirs that help to

support local Caribbean economies.

 Sport tourism also has the potential to bring attention to the emerging state of the art training

facilities now being built all over the Caribbean. E.g., The Usain Bolt Track at the UWI Mona

campus attracts visitors all over the world who visit to get a feel for the conditions under

which the Caribbean athletes train.

International Recognition

 The global recognition in sports brought to the Caribbean success has been accompanied by

significant sport monetary investment from private sponsors seeking to benefit from the

attention their companies receive by being associated with popular athletes. E.g., Puma as the

official sponsor of the Jamaican 2012 and 2016 Olympic teams, Digicel as the official

sponsor of West Indian Cricket.

 Sport tourism has benefited from international recognition as international media, sports

enthusiasts, spectators, and athletes visit the region to satisfy their curiosity about its sports

programmes or to see their favourite athletes.

 This recognition is fuelled by the high profile of record-breaking performances of Caribbean

athletes on social media, and by Caribbean media outlets broadcasting and streaming regional

and international sporting events of interest to the outside the region, in particular the

diaspora.
 Development of a Caribbean Identity

 The Caribbean is known globally as a major source of sporting talent (track and field, cricket,

football, swimming). As a result of this association with famous athletes, Caribbean athletes

are becoming known for their athletic abilities. The association has become a part of our

Caribbean identity.

 Some Caribbean countries have shaped an identity and an association with certain sports

because of its continuous success in that field. E.g., Jamaica for its track and field, Cuba for

its boxing programme and Trinidad and Tobago is known to produce excellent footballers.

 The sport the Caribbean first excelled at globally was cricket. The West Indies Team was

eventually formed I the 1900’s after the West Indian Colonies put together teams regularly to

challenge visiting English Teams. This led to the development of a West Indies Cricket

Programme that challenged England’s dominance in the sport, and it was this challenge that

put the team on the map in the world of cricket. This has led to many within and outside the

region to identify the Caribbean as a cricketing society.

 Track and field, like cricket has become a sporting area that the Caribbean us known for

because of the strong challenges and celebrated victories against North America and

European countries.

FACTORS RESTRICT SPORTS AS DEVELOPMENT

 Some countries do not have the wealth to invest in sports – build stadiums and training

facilities, provide equipment.

 Sports tourism is only developed in those countries that have the infrastructure and capital to

do so.

 Sometimes when countries invest in athletes and other professional, they do not return to the

Caribbean to contribute (because of lack of training facilities and employment opportunities)

 Even when countries invest in health and fitness, other factors play a negative role such as

poverty, pollution, mentality of the people.

 Sports can lead to competition and rivalry rather than Caribbean nationalism.