Parchment gets key to Morant Bay
Olympian grateful for honour as alma mater celebrates Alumni Week
Published:Tuesday | October 10, 2023 | 12:11 AMAinsworth Morris/Staff Reporter
Immediately after Hansle Parchment was handed the key to the township of Morant Bay, St Thomas, on Monday, the Olympian was speechless.
Although the Morant Bay High School alumnus was appreciative of the honour made possible by his alma mater and Morant Bay Mayor Hubert Williams, the humble 33-year-old sprint hurdler took a moment to reflect in silence.
“I must say I love the energy,” he finally said.
“I’m usually not one for this kind of excitement, but I really appreciate the turnout and all the love and support that you guys keep showing me, and I will definitely keep putting in the hard work ... . Keep supporting me, and I’ll keep doing my best to make all of you proud,” he told scores of officials and supporters who turned out at Colonel’s Cove in the St Thomas capital to celebrate the occasion at an event hosted by the Morant Bay High School Alumni Association.
After collecting the key, Parchment thanked everyone present.
“Now I can lock out some people,” he added, triggering cheers and laughter. “Now that I have the key, I can lock the roads now.”
Most known for his exploits in the 110m hurdles, his pet event in which he is the reigning Olympic champion, he told the gathering that he is looking forward to the Paris Games in 2024.
“And, of course, the aim is to get the gold!” he said, before the students of Morant Bay High School shouted “Gold! Gold! Gold!”
Monday’s civic recognition comes on the heels of an excellent season for Parchment.
In August, he opened Jamaica’s account at the 2023 World Athletics Championships, securing the country’s first of 12 medals, with a gold in the 110m hurdles.
Lifting his first Diamond League trophy just under a month ago, Parchment ended the 2023 track and field season with a world-leading and personal best time of 12.93 seconds.
The Morant Bay High School Alumni Association hosted the event to celebrate one of its most famous sons and to show him appreciation, love, and support from his native parish of St Thomas. The celebration was the high point of their action-packed Alumni Week celebrations, which kicked off on Sunday and will wrap on Saturday, October 14.
“When Governor General Sir Patrick Allen announced in 2021 that the second Wednesday in October would be recognised as National Alumni Day, the Morant Bay High School Alumni Association really took the idea and ran with it,” explained Bertram Anderson, president of the association.
“We thought it would be a fantastic opportunity to rally past students and bring them home for a week of celebrations and give back to the school,” he said. “This year, it was natural to also use the opportunity to honour Hansle, who is one of our outstanding alumni, and who has had such amazing success this year.”
The association also presented Parchment with its inaugural Outstanding Alumni Award on Monday.
“We decided to introduce the award to begin to recognise the many exceptional past students who are doing Morant Bay High proud in fields ranging from science to law to education to religion and more,” Anderson said.
“But the decision to give Hansle the inaugural award was unanimous, given how proud he made the school, parish, and the entire country this year,” he said.
The alumni will continue their celebrations on Tuesday with a Community Give Back Day, starting at 10 a.m., which will see them presenting fans and other items to the Princess Margaret Hospital and helping to paint the male ward. The week will culminate with a fundraising brunch on the Beach at Cerulean Bay on Saturday at 10 a.m.