Colin Maximin
Lord Coe made a £100,000 donation to support Jamaican track and field members affected by Hurricane Melissa during his two-day visit to the island.
The peer who is on his third visit to the island in recent times following trips in 2017 and 2022, met with the island’s Prime Minister Andrew Holness and Minister of Culture, Gender, Entertainment and Sports, Olivia Grange when he announced the donation last Tuesday at the Jamaica Athletics Administrative Association headquarters in Kingston during a media briefing.
The funds will support recovery programs for athletes, coaches, and officials affected by Hurricane Melissa, and will be distributed through the International Athletics Foundation.
“We can recruit external teams and agencies to come to the table to help,” stated Coe. “And I’m delighted to be able to announce this morning that we will make available $100,000 to help with those pathways and those programs.”
Coe,69, now in his tenth year as president, of the World Athletics Federation outlined a two-pronged plan to help Jamaica recover.
A local government sports spokesman said: ” We are very grateful for Lord Coe’s grant. This came in at a very good time when we need funds for our programs and to keep the athletes going. They need all the help they can get right now as things are very hard here in Jamaica. It is a very good gesture indeed. We thank Lord Coe.”
