Jamaica is a Caribbean island nation with imposing mountain ranges, tropical rainforests and reef-lined beaches. As a major tourist hub, many of its all-inclusive resorts are clustered in the western side of the country in the second city of Montego Bay, located in the parish of St James. This island nation is also known for its mouthwatering cuisine – guaranteed to tantalize your taste-buds – its nightlife and its pristine white sand beaches.
Jamaica, with a population of under 3-million people, is renowned as the birthplace of reggae music icon Bob Marley and athletic giant Usain Bolt.
The People: Jamaicans are full of energy and good vibes with outgoing personalities…
The Music: The island is known for its rich history and many genres of music such as mento, ska, rocksteady, reggae, dub music, dancehall, reggae fusion and related styles. Reggae is especially popular on account of the international fame of the legendary Bob Marley.
The Sports: Sports is a huge part of the Jamaican culture. Most if not all the schools, especially at the secondary level, are equipped with sports/physical education departments which aim to develop student athletes in major sporting disciplines for secondary level competition. These areas include track and field, cricket, football (soccer) and netball. Other non-traditional but rapidly expanding disciplines include, volleyball, basketball, badminton, tennis, rugby and chess. The majority of athletes who now compete professionally are products of the secondary level competitions.
Jamaica’s biggest success in sports has been in the area of track and field. This dominance began in 1948 and continues to-date. Jamaica is the only Caribbean territory that has consistently been a formidable force against first world countries and is one of the few countries that have had the enviable title ‘the sprint capital of the world’ bestowed upon it.
The 21st century was the real breakthrough for the country and not just on the track, but also in the field, winning top of the podium medals at the highest level. The 2004 summer Olympics in Athens setup the GOLD rush that was to come starting at the summer games at the Beijing in 2008, then the London and Rio Olympics in 2012 and 2016 respectively and World Championships from 2009 to 2019. However, this dominance did not come overnight. It actually started with the 400m where the country won a quinella and silver in the 800m at the 1948 summer Olympic games. Jamaica has been represented at every active Olympics to-date.
Also noteworthy is the fact that of the three females in the history of athletics to have won the world junior double in the sprints (100m and 200m), two of them are Jamaican. Presently the country holds many world, Olympic and world championships records in events such as the 100m, 200m, 4x100m relay, 4x200m relay, 400m-hurdles, 200m (indoor), 100m-hurdles (junior).
This little but tallawah country continues to produce musicians, world champions in sport and a force to be reckoned with on the world stage.
HP Sports Corner 