BARBOA has a new president

After 14 years and since its revival in 2006, the Barbados Basketball Officials Association (BARBOA) now has a female at the helm.

Senior national referee Jennifer Joseph-Hackett, one of the few female referees on the island and among Barbados’ best having had the honour of officiating at junior and senior levels internationally, is now the president of BARBOA.

Joseph- Hackett, who also played when she helped Lady Cougars championship team capture the #1 Beauty Supplies and Exchange Barbados Amateur Basketball Association Women’s League, was vice-president of BARBOA before succeeding former president Dexter Griffith who did not seek re-election for the position which is contested biannually.

A referee at the 2014 and 2018 Central American and Caribbean Games in Vera Cruz, Mexico and Barranquilla, Colombia, Joseph-Hackett was elected to the post on the night of Wednesday, January 15. She earned a total of nine votes, four more than her challenger Richard Walrond who is also one of Barbados’ most experienced referees.

The executives for 2020 to 2022 are president Jennifer Joseph-Hackett, vice-president Richard Walrond, secretary Shakira Shorey, treasurer Mark Harding, assistant secretary-treasurer Reco Watson, floor members Janelle Pilgrim and Alicia Carrington-Maynard.

As the newly elected president, Joseph-Hackett told Barbados TODAY in a telephone interview that on BARBOA’s agenda would be to come up with ideas on how to increase its membership. Even though it is a male-dominated sport, Joseph-Hackett said she would like to see more females getting involved in refereeing or generally just getting involved in some aspect of the sport.

In her capacity as president, Joseph-Hackett is already hard at work as she is one of the presenters for a three-month online clinic being held by the Caribbean Basketball Confederation (CBC) in conjunction with the International Basketball Federation (FIBA).

The clinic started yesterday Monday, June 8 and runs to August 14 for referees, instructors, desk officials, commissioners and all basketball enthusiasts who want to participate.   

Joseph-Hackett explained that there were four modules for the course and at the end of each one participants would be tested.

FIBA instructors and senior referees from various parts of the region are expected to conduct the three-month online course. They will focus on areas such as travelling, unsportsmanlike fouls, blocking and charge communication.

“Those are all topics that obviously happen in basketball. Some of them are personal in terms of fitness, mental health. Some of them are basketball rules. It encompasses everything to do with an official,” Joseph-Hackett said.

Some of the presenters are Jennifer Joseph- Hackett, Norville Young (British Virgin Islands), Kendall Henry (United States Virgin Islands) Roberto Vascas (Puerto Rico), Frederick Browne (Bahamas), Christian Wilmore (Bahamas) and Ian Yearwood (Cayman Islands).

morissalindsay@barbadostoday.bb