GoodHeart | Bridgeport stunted by lack of critical sporting infrastructure
Published:Saturday | February 18, 2023 | 11:13 AMKeisha Hill/Senior Gleaner Writer
Talent abounds at Bridgeport High School in Portmore, St Catherine. However, their performance in sports, including track and field, has considerably declined over the years because of a lack of infrastructure and sponsorship.
The first school to be opened in the dormitory community in September 1978, Bridgeport High School served the growing need for secondary school placement and its student athletes were a credit to the institution, especially in football. Up to the year 2001, the school placed in the top 10 of the now Inter-Secondary School Sports Association (ISSA) Boys’ and Girls’ Championships.
In 1999, it was deemed the Most Improved School of the Boys’ Championship. Their best performance to date was in 2002, when they attained second place, capturing the Foggy Burrows Award. The male track and field team has performed exceptionally throughout the years and many of them have been the recipients of track scholarships to colleges in the United States.
In recent times, a number of the students have achieved great milestones in sports in Jamaica and on the international stage. These include Jazeel Murphy, Raymond Brown, Jermaine Brown, Rasheed Broadbell, and Orlando Thomas.
However, over the years the school’s performance in track and field has declined, and they are no longer in the top 10. At the 2022 staging of the championships, they gained a mere two points.
On a recent visit to the school, our team observed less than favourable training facilities, including the school field, which is now an uneven dust bowl.
Marcia Wallen, head of the physical education department at Bridgeport High School, said it has been difficult for the institution because of the limited resources at their disposal to effectively produce the good-quality athletes required for the championships.
“There are several factors including the field that is not properly surfaced, no gym facilities and proper gears including spikes and sneakers for the students. We have over 30 students training for this year’s championships, and most of them practise on the road, and along the school corridors,” Wallen said.
“We have a few gym equipment that we make do with, and this is really not enough for the adequate training for the students. On top of that, some of the equipment have also gone missing,” she added. An equipped gym she said would facilitate use by all the sporting disciplines at the school.
Carl Page, head coach of the track and field team, and physical education teacher, said they desperately need sponsorship to re-surface the field. “The field has not been up to standard within the last 15 to 17 years. It needs to be dug up and re-surfaced and would take about five to $7 million to be done properly just for preliminary work,” he said.
Beverley Harris, principal at the institution, said the playing field that now exists is out of commission, due to the nearby canal which runs alongside it, and also a main community waste water drain that runs through the field from the Bridgeport community through to the canal.
“In preparation for major football and other sports events, such as Manning Cup, Boys’ and Girls’ Championships, the school has had to source other training fields at a cost to the school each time, sometimes even out of Portmore. In the past, competitive games, sports day and other events were held on the field, however, according to ISSA’s standards, our playing field was deemed unsuitable and below standard for hosting competitive matches,” Harris said.
According to Harris, to ensure viability and for the rehabilitation of the playing field, the following among other things, needs to be done: removal of loose, sandy and salty dirt and soil; importation and setting of marl; importation of top soil; rolling and pressing; grassing of field; continuous treatment; construction of an earth swale and the installation of a proper irrigation system and water-harvesting system.
“We have received estimates for the rehabilitation of the playing field for a costing of over $13 million dollars. To date we have approached several entities, individuals, and organisations, however, limited or no assistance have been garnered in trying to resurrect the playing field,” Harris said.
Despite the hazardous conditions of the field, the students still come out to training. “We have participated in a few track meets this season and the students are doing well. We have a fighting spirit, despite the fact that we are a small squad,” Page added.
Wallen and Page indicated that the school being on a shift system is also another hindrance to the success of their programme. “We would perhaps have more students coming to training, but most hurry home after school, especially in the evening because of the communities that they live in. Some of these communities can be violent and they refuse to stay back,” they said.
“We are doing the best that we can and working with what we have. We soldier on and do our best,” Page said.
In reference to the field, Page said they had started planting grass on the surface to ease the dust nuisance, however that has resulted in an uneven surface. “When it is windy, you can feel the dust particles in your nostrils. Thankfully we wear masks,” he said.
Top-performing students he said have also requested transfers to other schools, because of the poor training facilities that they have at the institution.
The lack of proper nutrition has also been another set-back for their programme. “Some of these students do not have breakfast in the mornings. In collaboration with the Parent Teachers Association and the Past Students Association, they are given a balanced breakfast meal twice per week. However, this is not enough especially for those in training,” Wallen said.
The school’s administration and teachers believe that the students can perform way above expectations if they are given the adequate resources needed for them to excel. They are imploring corporate Jamaica to assist the schools that are really in need, so that these students can have the opportunity to achieve their full potential.
To donate or learn more about Bridgeport High School, call 876-939-4732, 876-236-5913 or 876-236-5936 or email bridgeport.high.sce@moey.gov.jm and bridgeport_02@yahoo.com. Have a story you’d like to share? Email us at goodheart@gleanerjm.com.