Versed sports administrator Keith Joseph of St. Vincent and the Grenadines is the new president of the Caribbean Association of National Olympic Committees (CANOC).
Joseph earned the majority of votes on the second and final day of the XX CANOC General Assembly, attended by 26 of the 30-member National Olympic Committees (NOCs) and Commonwealth Games Federations (CGFs).
Joseph campaigned on a record of achievement of the last CANOC executive, in which he served as the secretary general, highlighted by their successful staging of the 2022 Caribbean Games in Guadeloupe.
The Games came off after a 13-year hiatus between the originally planned one – scheduled for 2009 in Trinidad and Tobago – that was stymied by the H1N1 virus. The 2022 edition too was postponed by one year due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Keith Joseph won the presidency comfortably over his Jamaican challenger Christopher Samuda by a count of 17-9, successfully replacing former president Brian Lewis to serve the 2022-2026 term.
Lewis himself got the nod from the membership to serve as the secretary general by a vote of 14-12 over Antigua and Barbuda’s Cliff Williams. The Virgin Islands’ John Abraham conceded the first vice-president post to the Cayman Islands’ Carson Ebanks by 16-10, while Ytannia Wiggins of Barbados (18) and Guadeloupe’s Alain Soreze (19) retained their executive member posts, beating Bruce Farara (14).
Edith Cox was returned unopposed as treasurer.
The Joseph-led administration will appoint a second vice-president as the post was now tallied via nominations.
