News

Trust the Process

Published

2 years ago

June 30, 2022

#TurksandCaicos, June 30, 2022 – Several negative statements regarding the U15 basketball team inspired me to write this particular article and those two statements will become our mantra going forward as we continue to trust the process as we work towards getting better. It caused me to question if a large percentage of all basketball enthusiast are aware of and subscribe to the Turks and Caicos Islands Basketball Federation’s vision and how it fits into the organization overall strategic objective. Those of us who found the vision to be meaningful have align ourselves with the vision. However, it does not prevent us from living in the moment and enjoying the advantages and small successes but we recognize that it is also about planning for the future. An effective vision statement clearly outlines the aspirations of any organization and what it hopes to achieve short term, medium term and long term.

The Turks and Caicos Islands U15 basketball team begun its journey several months ago by carrying out a tour of Jamaica where the team was able to participate in a number of basketball games and enjoy a degree of success in regard to the five games that they participated in. They posted a record of 3 victories and two losses. While in Jamaica the President of the Federation learnt that Puerto Rico was chosen as the host country for the 2022 Centrobasket U15 Championship. He immediately begun to lobby the organizers for a spot if any of the qualifying countries were unable to participate in the scheduled event for whatever reason. As faith would have it a spot became available and we were invited to be a part of this year’s Centrobasket Championship thereby realizing one of our strategic objectives sooner than expected. The invite was also historic in that the U15 is the first junior basketball team to formally represent the Turks and Caicos Islands in a formal regional FIBA basketball tournament and the second team to represent our beloved country in a FIBA regional basketball event, the 2004 men’s basketball team was the first.

We began our journey to Puerto Rico on June 16 2022. We arrived in Miami minus two team members and our President, Mr. Sydwell Glasgow who was undergoing minor surgery on the day we departed Providenciales. The 12 member contingent (10 players and 2 coaches) arrived in Puerto Rico several hours later and the remaining two players, who travel to Miami later that day, eventually made it to Puerto Rico later that night. Yep, that was the first leg of the race.

Subsequently, I attended the technical meeting the next day June 17. The technical meeting and Team Turks and Caicos first practice were conducted simultaneously. Head Coach Mervin Forbes oversaw the practice and in my capacity as Secretary-General and Team Manager I represent the team at the Technical Committee meeting. I was required to present the list of players, coaches and other accompany members of the delegation. The passport of each member of the delegation and the official uniforms of the players and coaching staff to ensure that the relevant FIBA requirements were met. The process begun at 2:15 pm on the aforementioned date and time. We got clearance for 9 players plus the coaching staff. Additional information was needed to clear the remaining 3 players and the last remaining evaluation was conducted at 2am the next day. All is well that ends well, the last three remaining players were cleared to compete – TCI contingent 12 players strong.

The journey continued on the 18^th of June 2022 when Team TCI played Team Costa Rica which was the first game of the Centrobasket U15 Championship. In a tightly contested basketball game that was highly competitive we saw a number of lead changes throughout the four quarters of the game. Team Turks and Caicos eventually won the game 67 to 61.

Team Turks and Caicos in its second game played a strong Dominican Republic (DR) team; who came into the event ranked as the third strongest team in the event. They proved to be a handful for the Turks and Caicos as Team Turks and Caicos struggle to keep pace with the DR. Team Turks and Caicos found itself down because of a number self-inflicted wounds by virtue of multiple turnovers and them not finishing when the team had uncontested lay-ups and uncontested jump shots. The DR won that game 100 to 46. It was obvious that Team Turks and Caicos can compete with the DR but too many mistakes and poor execution place them in an unattainable position.

In game three, we saw more of the same from Team Turks and Caicos in the game against Puerto Rico. Our defense were suspect, turnovers and missed opportunities contributed to us not keeping pace with Puerto Rico; the strongest team in the tournament. It was obvious, that we have the complimentary pieces but we need more time to work out the kinks and play together as a unit. Team Turks and Caicos lost the game 123 to 32 to the defending champions.

Next up for Team Turks and Caicos Islands was Mexico, another Latino power house who is ranked number two in this event. They are not skilled as Puerto Rico but the style of play is similar. Defensively and offensively they keep coming at you as was evident in the game played against Team Turks and Caicos. They defeated Turks and Caicos 103 to 39.

Team Turks and Caicos fifth and final game was played against Team Bahamas. This was a battle between two teams that share a similar colonial history and that was once one country. They have a history of competing against each other in the sport of basketball. Whenever they compete it is for bragging rights and the losing team is reminded by the winning team, whenever the opportunity presents itself, that when last we met on the field which country won. Team Bahamas defeated Team Turks and Caicos 79 to 56.

Team Turks and Caicos have a number of players whose outstanding individual performance during the tournament caused them to be named in the point standing and rebound standing: Dylan Morris is third in scoring with 18.3 points per game just below Puerto Rico’s Felipe Andres, the second leading scorer with 18.4 points per game. Roldjudson Lacossade (RJ) is top rebounder with highest rebounding percentage with 15.8 rebounds per game.

Team Turks and Caicos finish like we started: we played gritty, hustling, resolute basketball. Despite being undersize, having less experience then our competition and having to contend with injuries along way. Team Turks and Caicos have nothing to be a shame about – they met the giants on the field of battle who were more equipped and better prepared than they were but they held their own with just a “sling shot and a couple of stones”: (Dylan Morris, Roldjudson Lacossade (RJ), Harry Taylor, Ethan Taylor, Adin Missick, Malachi Missick, Dillion Forbes, Takeem Williams, Rezon Carmichael, T’kai Delancy, Kymani Carter and Onai Lightbourne). Historic Diamonds in the rough.

There are number of persons we need to thank because without the cooperation and support of the following individuals and business establishments the Federation would not have been able to realize this enormous task. I start by the thanking the parents of the young men that was selected to compete on the U15 basketball team. Thanks to the principals who made arrangements for the young men to sit their exams subsequent to returning to the Turks and Caicos Islands. We take this opportunity to thank Hon. Rachel Taylor and the Hon. Otis Morris for their individual roles in ensuring that we were able to attend this prestigious event by making sure all the pieces fell into place. We express our appreciation to the Chairman, Director and Staff of the Sports Commission for the part they played in assisting the Federation as they went beyond the call of duty to ensure that our athletes had access to the facilities and other much need assistance.

We also take this opportunity to thank our major sponsor TDMG Concordia. The company sponsor the team, the coaches and the Federation Executives uniforms. We are extremely grateful for your much needed assistance. We also take this opportunity to thank Long Bay Express for sponsoring the uniforms that was used in Jamaica and were used in Puerto Rico as our practice uniforms. We would be remiss if we did not thank the various employees in a number of Government Departments for assisting us in crunch time. Blessings to all of you, especially the indigenous population and those living and working in the Turks and Caicos Islands who watch the games on Facebook and cheered us on.

Press Release: TCI Basketball Federation

News

TCIAA ADDRESSES ANNOUNCEMENT OF TEMPORARY SUSPENSION OF OPERATIONS BY INTERCARIBBEAN AIRWAYS INTO SOUTH CAICOS

Published

2 days ago

September 8, 2024

Deandrea Hamilton

Providenciales, Turks and Caicos Islands, Sunday, 8th September 2024 – Yesterday, Saturday September 7th, 2024 it was brought to the attention of the Turks and Caicos Islands Airports Authority (“TCIAA”) through a social media posting that InterCaribbean Airways (“ICA”) will be discontinuing services between Providenciales and South Caicos airports for two weeks, starting on September 14th and ending on September 30th 2024.

Unfortunately, ICA’s notice of this service disruption was not directly communicated to the Airports Authority. Instead, it was sent to select hoteliers, government offices in South Caicos, and various stakeholders. ICA has reportedly suggested to stakeholders that the cause of the service suspension is due to restrictions imposed by the Airports Authority, specifically concerning the airline’s inability to use an Embraer 120 (“E120”) aircraft for South Caicos operations.

On August 29th 2024, ICA’s Operations Manager wrote an email to the TCIAA’s Deputy CEO for Operations and Director of Safety and Security, vaguely informing them of the need to temporarily remove their current equipment (a DHC-6 Twin Otter aircraft) from service and inquiring about using the E120 in its place. Regrettably but understandably, this email was not formally responded to as those emailed were already engaged in conversations with the same Operations Manager for ICA on matters relating to special one-off flights using the E120 and the airport for after-hour operations. Thus, the lack of response to this single email, may have been due to a misunderstanding of the nature of the inquiry in the light of ongoing conversations. Apart from this single email, ICA did not make any other contact with the TCIAA to procure a response from those emailed, or attempt to escalate its concerns to the upper leadership of TCIAA for proactive engagement and resolution. To be clear, at no time did ICA advise the TCIAA of its intent to suspend services into South Caicos or contact the TCIAA to substantially coordinate mitigating solutions to its need to remove the current aircraft from service.

The Airports Authority has previously received approval from the UK Regulator, Air Safety Support International (ASSI) to conduct one-off flights of aircraft exceeding the 10,000 kilograms weight limit, including commercial and general aviation aircraft into South Caicos. However, ASSI has in later times advised that no further requests will be granted until specific security measures are in place, namely the completion of a perimeter fence and the installation of security scanning machines.

As the public is aware, the perimeter fence of the South Caicos airport was significantly destroyed during the 2017 hurricanes. Upon transitioning to new leadership between late 2021/early 2022, works for the installation of a new perimeter fence began, and construction was completed on 3rd September 2024. Before ICA’s announcement, the Airports Authority’s security managers were and remain scheduled to fly to South Caicos on Monday, 9th September 2024 to formally accept the handover of the security perimeter fence. Upon completion of this handover, the TCIAA will document the status of the fence and submit an application to ASSI to upgrade the airport’s security status.

It is important to note that South Caicos Airport is currently not approved by ASSI for international flight operations. The airport is restricted to aircraft operations involving aircraft weighing less than 10,000 kilograms. Therefore, the operation of the E120 aircraft is currently not permissible, despite the airport meeting firefighting requirements for that aircraft.

To gain ASSI clearance for international aircraft operations, the TCIAA must provide evidence of a compliant installation of the perimeter fence, as well as install security screening equipment that meet the Overseas Territories Aviation Requirements (“OTAR”) standards. Once these requirements are fulfilled, ASSI will communicate this to the TCI Civil Aviation Authority, which will then advise the Governor to reinstate the airport into the national aviation security network.

It is possible to request special leave from ASSI to operate the E120 for domestic commercial flights. If ICA had made clear its intentions with the TCIAA it would have been advised of the imminent security handover of the airport’s perimeter fence line and interim options for passenger and baggage screening which may have prevented the need for its decision and announcement made to suspend flight services into South Caicos. Notably, an Invitation to Tender for the acquisition of Security Screening Equipment is currently lodged with the Procurement Board awaiting its approval and release to allow for bids to be received.

The Airports Authority has been informed that ICA has previously contracted with Caicos Express to handle flights during periods when its DHC-6 is out of service. ICA, however, has stated that contracting Caicos Express is costly and that bookings during the suspension period are too low to justify the expense (there being only 58 reported bookings during the period). The TCIAA is unable to confirm the fact of or the extent to which efforts were made by ICA to negotiate a ‘filler’ service arrangement with Caicos Express.

The TCIAA has noted with disappointment with the manner in which ICA’s decision was made and communicated to both the Government and the people of South Caicos. It does not appear that every possible option was explored or exhausted before a unilateral decision was made to suspend flight services, and believes more could have been done to ensure the island of South Caicos maintained connectivity during this period. To this end, the TCIAA is working aggressively with the support of the Office of the Premier and Ministry of Border Control (the Ministry responsible for Airports) to resolve and/or mitigate the adverse implications of ICA’s unfortunate decision and announcement. The Public will be updated as works for a resolution progress.

News

interCaribbean Airways South Caicos Route Update

Published

2 days ago

September 8, 2024

Deandrea Hamilton

Turks and Caicos, September 8, 2024 – In response to the many questions we have received about a planned temporary suspension of service into South Caicos from Providenciales, we wish to share the following information:
Our DHC6 Twin Otter aircraft is being removed from service September 14th to 30th for planned schedule maintenance activities as is normally required for aircraft.
As this is the only aircraft in our fleet currently approved to operate into South Caicos, it was decided to minimize the impact by choosing what is historically the least busy period of the year, the last two weeks of September.

At the time the decision was confirmed to start the maintenance activities, only 58 passenger seats were sold out of the 1,292 available across the flight segments being cancelled. The impact on actual passenger bookings was therefore considered minimal in light of the numbers stated and the fact that there are ongoing ferry and charter services available between South Caicos and Providenciales.

Before canceling the schedule, we attempted to secure local charter flights (as we did in the past), but costs for providing charters to allow the continued operations of the service had increased to a level where it became commercially prohibitive. Likewise, we were not able to engage any foreign regional operator who could provide service for the period.

Whilst our EMB120 aircraft is capable of operating into the South Caicos airport (as we safely did from 2007 to 2017 when operations of this type ceased due to airport certification issues), we now require a special approval to operate the aircraft there due to the current airport certification status. Although numerous approval requests over the years since were not granted, we are in ongoing communication with TCIAA, (the operator of the airport) regarding obtaining the necessary approvals and await their response. We remain hopeful for a positive outcome.

For over 17 years, we have steadfastly demonstrated our commitment to our people by operating this essential air service between Providenciales and South Caicos without ever receiving any government subsidy for it. We are aware that subsidies are being paid to another carrier on the Grand Turk and Salt Cay routes.

With the announcement of the funeral of a most beloved and historic member of our community, we understand there will be an increase in demand for travel to and from South Caicos and again state that we are prepared to operate our EMB 120 Brasilia aircraft in the interim if we are granted authority to do so.

We remain committed to serving the South Caicos community and are actively working on solutions to minimize disruptions. We appreciate our customers’ understanding and look forward to resuming our regular service as soon as possible.

For any questions or concerns, please contact our customer service team at CustomerService@interCaribbean.com