Expect big things - Myers confident ahead of Commonwealth Games start
Published:Monday | April 2, 2018 | 12:00 AMRobert Bailey/Gleaner Writer
Dalton Myers, chef de mission of the Jamaica's team to the Commonwealth Games, said it is all systems go for Team Jamaica's campaign at the multi-discipline event, which begins tomorrow in the Gold Coast, Australia.
Myers told The Gleaner in an interview from the team's base Down Under yesterday that the country's 115 athletes have settled well in the Athletes' Village and that everyone is in high spirits ahead of the start of the championships.
"By and large, everything is getting in top gear in terms of preparations," said Myers. "Most of the athletes are in the village now and also the officials. [There are] just a few to come in this week and so everything is coming on and coming on good."
"The village is awesome and the training facilities are good and so the athletes are in really high spirits and they are looking forward to the Opening Ceremony and, of course, the competitions that are coming after," Myers said.
He added that swimmer Alia Atkinson will be the country's flag bearer at tomorrow's opening ceremony, while thrower Fedrick Dacres and netballer Jhanielle Fowler-Reid are the respective male and female captains.
At the last championships, which was held in Glasgow in 2014, Jamaica won 22 medals - 10 gold, four silver and eight bronze. The island is set to compete in 15 disciplines at the championships, which will run from April 4 to 14.
Myers added that he expects the team to do very well considering this is the country's largest contingent of athletes at the Commonwealth Games.
"I think we expect to do really well, but it is hard to quantify it in terms of medals, but I think it is largest contingent we have ever sent to the Commonwealth Games, and because of that, we think that certainly we should do well in athletics," Myers said.
"We have a very strong team in athletics led by Elaine Thompson and Yohan Blake out there," he said.
"In netball, the team is a very strong team because they went to New Zealand and they did really well in a training camp, and even though that is training camp, I think that vibes is good and they are looking forward to doing well," Myers stated.
"Alia (Atkinson) and Yona Knight-Wisdom are also two individuals who we think should do really well in the pool," he said.