Many-time national 400m hurdles champion Deon Hemmings-McCatty, the first woman to win an Olympic Games gold medal for Jamaica, is to be honored for her impact on local athletics and inspiration to young athletes.
The occasion is the launch of a new film and book about track and field on Thursday at G.C. Foster College starting at 4:00 pm.
The event will feature the local premiere of the documentary film, Finding Foster: The Search for Jamaica’s Lost Sprint Hero and the launch of the new book, 50 Days Afire: Inside Jamaica’s Long Sprint to Freedom by Michael A. Grant and Hubert Lawrence.
Finding Foster is the brainchild of Grant, who uncovered vital information and photographs of Jamaican pioneering sprinter and coach Gerald Claude “G C” Foster while conducting research for the book.
With a runtime of 30 minutes, the production features analysis by Lawrence and sports broadcaster Kayon Raynor, and follows Foster on his quest to compete at the 1908 London Olympics, travelling alone on his own funds. With the help of British coach Harry Andrews, Foster was able to turn his failed bid at Olympic glory into a spectacular three-month tour of Great Britain where he competed prodigiously, beating the British champion and other Olympians in several meets. While there, Foster became a favorite of the British sporting press and often addressed adoring crowds following his races.
Fifty Days Afire, the third athletics collaboration between Grant and leading athletics analyst Lawrence, chronicles the fifty most significant performances by Jamaican athletes over 115 years of competition, beginning with G.C Foster’s exploits in the UK in 1908. In addition to never-before-seen photographs of Foster as an athlete and pictures representing all the featured races, the book addresses issues of class, nationalism, and Jamaica’s love of sprinting, while discussing reasons for the growing dominance of the island’s athletes on the world stage.
Track fans will witness how influential the 50 races have been to the overall development of the sport, even though they do not all feature victories or records.
“I can’t say no,” Mrs. Hemmings-McCatty said in accepting her invitation to the event, “I will be there.” The special award was initiated by local gaming brand AnyBet, the title sponsor of the book, film and launch event. Grants for research and production were also provided by NCB Capital Markets, Sherwin-Williams, the Sports Development Foundation and Tastee Ltd., while other sponsorship was provided by G.C. Foster College, Supreme Outdoor Advertising, TrackAlerts.com and WISYNCO Ltd.
In addition to the presentation by Hemmings-McCatty, the event at G.C. Foster will also feature the unveiling of a portrait of Foster as a young athlete, and the authors will read from as well as sign books on sale at the venue.
