Thursday, October 11, 2007

Prime Minister of Jamaica Wins IOC World Women and Sport Trophy

Congratulations Portia Simpson-Miller - Former Prime Minister of Jamaica.
08 March 2007 - Lausanne, Switzerland

Today, joining in the world’s celebration of International Women’s Day, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) awarded its World Women and Sport Trophy for 2007 to the first female Jamaican Prime Minister, Portia Simpson Miller.

At an official ceremony held at the Olympic Museum in Lausanne, Portia Simpson Miller was honoured for her outstanding dedication to promoting women’s activities in Jamaican sport – both as athletes and as administrators. As well as the World Trophy, five continental trophies were presented, to Fridah Bilha Shiroya (Kenya / Africa), Jackie Joyner-Kersee (USA / Americas), Naila Shatara-Kharroub (Palestine / Asia), Ilse Bechthold (Germany / Europe) and Veitu Apana Diro (Papua New Guinea / Oceania). During the official announcement, IOC President Jacques Rogge emphasised that “the IOC, through its Women and Sport Commission, has been working untiringly to implement programmes to enable women and girls the world over to feel fully involved in the universal movement to promote women in and through sport”.

Since 2000 the IOC has annually recognised a person, organisation or institution for their remarkable contribution to the promotion of women in the sports world. The winners are selected by the IOC Women and Sport Commission, chaired by IOC member Anita L. DeFrantz. This year the Commission received 65 applications from National Olympic Committees (NOC) and International Olympic Sports Federations (IFs) from all over the world.

A political voice for the good of women and sport

Portia Simpson Miller, winner of the world trophy in 2007, is the first female Prime Minister of Jamaica, elected in March 2006. Her exceptional political career started in 1970. In 1989 she was appointed Minister for Sport, and in this function was also responsible for Women’s Affairs. Shortly after her election as Prime Minister she became one of the first world leaders to sign the World Anti-Doping Code. Throughout these years, her personal leadership, based on a “bottom-up” philosophy, has clearly supported the development of women’s sporting activities in Jamaica. As a result, more and more women are being elected to the decision-making bodies of the National Sport Federations.

A life devoted to serving society

Fridah Bilha Shiroya, Treasurer of the NOC of Kenya, is the winner of the trophy for Africa. One of her outstanding merits is the strengthening of women’s role in Kenyan sport: as the first female to hold an executive office in the Kenyan NOC, she founded the “Association of Kenya Women in Sports (TAKWIS)” in 1996. This initiative became a driving force to increase women’s participation in Kenyan sports as well as female representation in the national administrative sports structures. Furthermore, Fridah Bilha Shiroya has proved her innovative spirit by founding the Kenya Women’s Football Association and bringing the sports of softball and baseball to her country.

Conveying values to the youth

One of the world’s greatest Olympians, Jackie Joyner-Kersee, wins this year’s trophy for Americas. With the creation of the Jackie Joyner-Kersee Youth Foundation in 1988, the six-time Olympic medallist has helped young people to prepare for their role in society – driven by guiding principles such as character and leadership, teamwork and dignity. The Foundation raised USD 12 million to build the Jackie Joyner-Kersee Center in her hometown East St Louis, Illinois, which offers more than 30 programmes in education, culture, arts, sports and fitness, health and life skills for young people aged 6 to 18 with a major focus on young girls. About her tireless work with the Foundation, Joyner-Kersee says: “Once I leave this earth, I know I have done something that will continue to help others”.

Opening up the sports world for girls in Palestine

The Women and Sport Commission’s choice for the trophy for Asia was Palestinian Naila Shatara-Kharroub, a pioneer in establishing and developing physical education for girls in her country since 1979. Shatara-Kharroub has served the Ministry of Education for several years, and is today the Principal of the Dar Al-Kailma School in Bethlehem. Despite the political, social, economic and security-related challenges, and having started from zero, Naila Shatara-Kharroub has managed to introduce physical education in the 50 girls’ schools of Bethlehem and Jericho Districts, establish playgrounds, organise sports equipment and conduct various training courses for female physical education teachers.

Role model for young female sport leaders

Ilse Bechthold, Chairperson of the IAAF’s Women’s Committee since 1981 and member of the IOC Women and Sport Commission, is the 2007 winner of the trophy for Europe. She has dedicated her competence and will to opening the door for women to nearly every discipline that is practised in athletics. In 1998 she initiated the “Year of Women in Athletics” within the IAAF, as well as several worldwide clinics and courses. Having been successful in the discus, shot put and pentathlon herself, her passion for sport has also influenced her professional life. She has taught physical education to thousands of future teachers at the University of Frankfurt and served as a spokesperson for female students.

Getting all generations moving
Veitu Apana Diro
, Vice-President of the NOC of Papua New Guinea, is the winner for Oceania. She is one of the longest-serving women in sport in her country. As a founder of the national netball federation in 1965, she has always encouraged women and girls to discover this sport. In 2000, she became Chairperson of the then newly founded Papua New Guinean Women in Sport (WIS) Committee. Her efforts towards increasing female participation in sport were and are addressed to all generations: she has coached numerous young girls in various sports, but has also established a masters association for older women. Her recent initiative is a mentoring programme in which elite female athletes go into schools to motivate young girls to practise sport.

Read it for yourself here: Click

Bonita Jamaica
Beautiful Place. Amazing People.

See you in Jamaica.

31 comments:

Anonymous said...

I think this is one of the most vital information for me.
And i'm glad reading your article. But wanna remark on few general things, The web site style is perfect, the articles is really nice : D. Good job, cheers

My homepage: bleeding hemorrhoids treatment

Anonymous said...

I am extremely impressed with your writing skills and also with the layout on your
weblog. Is this a paid theme or did you modify it yourself?
Anyway keep up the excellent quality writing, it is rare to see a great blog like this one today.


Feel free to visit my website; healthy diet plans

Anonymous said...

Wonderful blog! I found it while browsing on Yahoo News.
Do you have any suggestions on how to get listed in Yahoo News?
I've been trying for a while but I never seem to get there! Appreciate it

Feel free to visit my web site: best diet
My page - diet plans that work fast

Anonymous said...

My brother suggested I might like this blog.
He was once totally right. This publish truly made my day. You cann't imagine just how so much time I had spent for this information! Thanks!

Also visit my web-site :: how much should i weigh Chart
Also see my web site > what should i weigh for my height

Anonymous said...

of course like your web site but you have to take a look at the spelling on several of your posts.
Several of them are rife with spelling problems and I find it very bothersome to tell the reality on the other hand I'll certainly come again again.

Feel free to surf to my blog ... healthy diet plans
Also see my webpage - healthy diet plans

Anonymous said...

Hi i am kavin, its my first time to commenting anywhere, when i
read this post i thought i could also make comment due to this sensible paragraph.


Feel free to visit my page ... bankruptcy laws in florida

Anonymous said...

Unquestionably believe that which you said. Your favorite reason
appeared to be on the internet the easiest thing to be aware of.
I say to you, I definitely get irked while people consider worries that they just don't know about. You managed to hit the nail upon the top and also defined out the whole thing without having side effect , people could take a signal. Will probably be back to get more. Thanks

Also visit my weblog :: diets that work
Also see my web site: easy diets that work

Anonymous said...

Howdy would you mind stating which blog platform you're using? I'm looking to start my own blog in
the near future but I'm having a hard time making a decision between BlogEngine/Wordpress/B2evolution and Drupal. The reason I ask is because your design and style seems different then most blogs and I'm looking for
something completely unique. P.
S Sorry for being off-topic but I had to ask!

Also visit my homepage: diets that Work
my webpage: diets that work

Anonymous said...

Admiring the time and effort you put into your website and in
depth information you provide. It's good to come across a blog every once in a while that isn't the
same old rehashed material. Wonderful read! I've bookmarked your site and I'm including your RSS feeds to my Google account.


My page ... http://orlandochristiansingles.org/social/blog/view/109322/raspberry-ketone-for-a-healthier-dieting
Also see my page: good diet plans for women

Anonymous said...

Hey there, You've done a great job. I'll definitely digg it and personally recommend to my friends.
I'm confident they will be benefited from this site.

Feel free to surf to my blog - microsoft registry cleaner

Anonymous said...

Thank you for the auspicious writeup. It in fact was a amusement account it.
Look advanced to far added agreeable from you!
By the way, how could we communicate?

my homepage; healthy diet plans

Anonymous said...

An intriguing discussion is worth comment. I think that you need to write more on
this subject, it might not be a taboo subject but generally
people don't talk about such issues. To the next! Kind regards!!

Here is my blog post how to file for bankruptcy in florida

Anonymous said...

It is truly a great and useful piece of info.
I'm satisfied that you shared this useful information with us. Please keep us informed like this. Thanks for sharing.

Here is my site; graduate certificate

Anonymous said...

certainly like your web-site however you need to take a look at the spelling on several of your posts.
Several of them are rife with spelling problems and I to find it very
troublesome to tell the reality on the other
hand I will definitely come again again.


my web site online graduate certificate

Anonymous said...

Its like you read my thoughts! You seem to know so much about this,
like you wrote the guide in it or something. I believe that you just can do
with a few p.c. to drive the message home a
bit, but other than that, this is great blog. An excellent read.
I will definitely be back.

My homepage: best diet

Anonymous said...

Heya just wanted to give you a quick heads up and let
you know a few of the pictures aren't loading properly. I'm
not sure why but I think its a linking issue. I've tried it in two different internet browsers and both show the same results.

Feel free to visit my site diet that works

Anonymous said...

hi!,I love your writing so so much! share we be in contact extra about your post on AOL?
I require an expert in this space to resolve my problem.
Maybe that's you! Looking ahead to look you.

Feel free to visit my site: raspberry Ketone diet

Anonymous said...

I'm gone to say to my little brother, that he should also go to see this website on regular basis to obtain updated from hottest gossip.

Here is my web site ... diet plans to lose weight

Anonymous said...

Hello there, You've done an incredible job. I will certainly digg it and personally recommend to my friends. I'm sure they will be benefited from
this site.

Feel free to visit my webpage; waist to height ratio ranges

Anonymous said...

Hi there, its nice article concerning media print, we all be aware
of media is a great source of information.

My blog post ... activity calorie calculator

Anonymous said...

Great blog here! Also your site loads up very
fast! What web host are you using? Can I get your affiliate link
to your host? I wish my web site loaded up as quickly as
yours lol

My website - airplane game

Anonymous said...

Wonderful blog you have here but I was wanting to know if you
knew of any user discussion forums that cover the same topics discussed here?

I'd really like to be a part of group where I can get advice from other knowledgeable individuals that share the same interest. If you have any recommendations, please let me know. Kudos!

my weblog; diet that works

Anonymous said...

I visited many sites however the audio quality for audio songs current at this website
is in fact wonderful.

Here is my web page: airplane landing games

Anonymous said...

After going over a few of the blog articles on your website, I really appreciate your technique of writing a blog.
I book marked it to my bookmark site list and will be checking back
in the near future. Please visit my website too and let
me know what you think.

Feel free to surf to my web page ... seohopper.com

Anonymous said...

Heya i am for the first time here. I found this board and I find It really useful &
it helped me out a lot. I hope to give something back and help others like you aided me.


Here is my site Learn to Play The fiddle

Anonymous said...

I have to thank you for the efforts you have put in writing this website.
I am hoping to view the same high-grade content by you later on as well.
In truth, your creative writing abilities has motivated me to get my very own
blog now ;)

Review my page ... Laser Hair Removal Side Effects

Anonymous said...

Hello! I could have sworn I've been to this site before but after browsing through many of the articles I realized it's new to me.
Anyhow, I'm certainly pleased I found it and I'll be bookmarking it and checking back frequently!


Feel free to visit my web blog ... oakland asbestos lawyer

Anonymous said...

Pretty nice post. I just stumbled upon your weblog and wanted to say that
I have truly enjoyed surfing around your blog posts. In any case I'll be subscribing to your rss feed and I hope you write again very soon!

Feel free to visit my blog post ... singing instructor

Anonymous said...

Thanks for an idea, you sparked at thought from a angle I hadn’t given thoguht to
yet. Now lets see if I can do something with it.

Review my blog post: tips to get pregnant

Anonymous said...

What's Happening i'm new to this, I stumbled upon this I have found It
positively useful and it has helped me out loads. I'm hoping to contribute & help different users like its aided me. Good job.

my site :: how much does a tattoo hurt

Anonymous said...

It's remarkable to pay a visit this website and reading the views of all mates about this piece of writing, while I am also keen of getting knowledge.

http://wiki.aimc.lv/index.php?title=How_to_loss_weight

Here is my web blog diet food