Archive for October 8th, 2008
Athleteshead to India
(CNS): The Cayman Islands Olympic Committee (CIOC) will be sending a team of young athletes, all aged 18 years old or less, to compete in the 3rd Commonwealth Youth Games in Pune, India, from 12 to18 October. The sports events for these Games include Athletics, Swimming, Badminton, Men’s Boxing, Shooting, Table Tennis, Tennis, Weightlifting and Men’s Wrestling. (Left: Richard Parchment and Joel Francis)
According to CIOC, Cayman was limited to eight athletes to participate in the Games. As some Sports Associations chose not to participate in the Games, the Cayman Team will compete in Track & Field only and consists of the following athletes:
Ashleigh Nalty – long jump, high jump, 4×100 relay
Alexandra Terry – discus throw
Gizelle Wright – 100m, 200m, 4×100 relay
Jahzenia Thomas – long jump, 4×100 relay
Chantelle Morrison – 100m, 200m, 4×100 relay
Joseph Suberan – 100m, 200m
Steven Reid – 100m, 200m
Travis Webb – long jump, high jump
The CIOC team leader / Chef de Mission will be Richard Parchment. The Athletics team manager is Sana Tugman and the Athletics coach is Tyrone Yen. CIOC President Donald McLean will also be in attendance, and a few parents are planning to support the athletes in Pune.
The Commonwealth Games Federation will be assisting CIOC with some of the costs for airfare and accommodation for the delegation. The delegation has been outfitted with the excess gear from Puma that was donated for the Beijing 2008 Games and additional items have been sourced locally from Island Embroidery Ltd.
A send-off meeting with the delegation was held on Tuesday, 7 October, at the Truman Bodden Sports Complex. Parents were in attendance with the athletes to receive information on travel and the Games. The Ministry for Sports was represented by Assistant Chief Officer Joel Francis, and apologies were received from Honorable Minister Alden McLaughlin and Chief Officer AngelaMartins.
Francis presented the Cayman flag to the Chef de Mission Richard Parchment. CIOC and the Ministry for Sports wish the team all the best in their travels and in their competition.
The team departs on October 10th and returns on October 20th. Please see the attached competition schedule for the Cayman athletes; and log on to www.cygpune2008.com for more information on the Games.
The CYG Pune 2008 delegation, L-R:
Richard Parchment, Sana Tugman, Chantelle Morrison, Ashley Nalty, Gizelle Wright, Steven Reid, Jahzenia Thomas, Travis Webb, Alexandra Terry, Tyrone Yen, Joseph Suberan.
Way forward for Caymanian arts
(CNS): As part of an ongoing discussion relating to the development of arts and culture in our islands, the National Gallery is holding a discussion session entitled ‘Art as a Product? The commercial arts vs. art for arts sake’, which will take place at 6:00pm on Tuesday, 14 October, at the National Gallery Harbour Place location on South Church Street. (Left: a painting by Miss Lassie)
The first in this series of discussions resulted in enthusiastic dialogue from both the invited panel and the audience, with some extremely interesting points raised. The next session is set to be just as informative.
“Following directly on from points raised in the last discussion, this session will look at the different ways artists approach the creation of their work and the various commercial opportunities available for artists in the Cayman Islands,” explains Event Coordinator and National Gallery Deputy Director Natalie Coleman. “It is a forum through which artists can put their own questions to the invited panel and we encourage all to attend.”
Admission is free with complementary refreshments. To RSVP please e-mail communications.ng@candw.ky or call 945 8111.
Safe return for Havana flight
(CNS): Cayman Airways flight 832, which departed Grand Cayman at 12:31pm Wednesday bound for Havana, Cuba, returned to the Owen Roberts International Airport shortly after takeoff as a precautionary measure due to an abnormal flap indication. At no point did the flight crew declare an emergency, the airline said in a release. The abnormal indication was later confirmed to be an indicating error and not a genuine abnormal condition.
Within 35 minutes of the aircraft returning to the gate, all passengers and baggage were re-boarded onto another Cayman Airways aircraft, which departed for Havana, Cuba without incident at 1:20pm.
Easy win for Java Knight
(CNS):
“It was encouraging to see such a good turnout which many are hoping will mark the revival of Cruiser Racing around these waters,” said Cayman Islands Sailing Club Commodore, Andrew Moon.“A total of eight boats ranging in size from 48ft right down to 30ft, with monohulls and catamarans, all competed on the same track.”
Winds were mainly light from the east at around 10 knots, so a long race was expected. The start was delayed by a few minutes to get all competitors in the area and just after 10am the race started. With a tight reach to the Main Channel, Fu Liem’s Java Knight helmed by David Carmichael and Yahoo Yahoo helmed by Clive Bodden pulled away from the fleet and entered the channel almost neck and neck. Java Knight dropped their 0.75oz spinnaker and hoisted a number one genoa so that they could switch to a lighter 0.5oz spinnaker for the next leg. During this period, Yahoo Yahoo was able to carry her asymmetrical sail for longer and over took in the channel. Once out of the channel, it was a gybe and a straight run to the Banks.
However, the competitors had to keep a sharp lookout because of the unusually high amounts of debris in the water. “We were amazed by the volume of driftwood and rubbish in the water,” said Jon Faris, sailing on Soledad X. “This must have been the result of the recent hurricanes that have devastated Jamaica and Haiti and was a sobering reminder of how lucky the Cayman Islands has been this season but we were delighted to see a pod of dolphins swimming freely around the boats.”
Java Knight was the first to finish the 2008 Harbour House Marina Banks and Back race at around 3pm. Yahoo Yahoo finished around an hour later in second place due to the diminishing winds, with Shanti helmed by Rob Hutchison in third place.
Red Hunter and Continental Drift had a good race as they finished within minutes of each other, and the last three boats Enchantress, Soledad X and Jenemiah had to retire due to failing light. Red Hunter, Continental Drift and Enchantress experienced the strongest winds of the day having been caught in a 30 knot squall off the Turtle Farm which saw Enchantress take an early advantage, but the catamaran could not match the monohulls for the upwind beat to the finish and so lost her gain.
The CISC said it would like to thank Sunset Divers for allowing the Club us to use theirmoorings and for offering a water taxi service to the competitors, Sunset House for the location, which everyone agreed was fantastic, Peta Adams, for once again giving up her weekend to be race officer and the Trophy Sponsor, Harbour House Marina.
“A great weekend of sailing was had by all and it is believed that this was one of the biggest turn outs in a long time,” added Moon.” The next event is being planned as a sail in company, and more than likely it will be to a raft up off North Side, but the result is the same, sailing and having fun!”
Position Boat Helm
1st – Java Knight – Fu Liem
2nd – Yahoo Yahoo – Clive Bodden
3rd – Shanti – Robert Hutchison
4th – Red Hunter – Joel Bushfield
5th – Continental Drift – Brad Martinson
Retired – Enchantress – Henry Smith
Retired – Soledad X – Jon Farris
Retired – Jenemiah – Mike Gavel
Watching out for the seniors
(CNS): Head of the Department of Child and Family Services Deanna Look Loy has urged the community to follow UN principles in the treatment of older persons and watch out for their well-being. “We have to ensure that we treat our elderly with dignity, keep them free from exploitation, and promote their physical and mental health,” she said at the Older Persons Wellness Fair recently.
The fair focused on the physical, mental and spiritual well-being of Cayman’s senior citizens when around 80 of Cayman’s older residents went along to receive tips on improving spiritual wellness, nutrition and managing medicines. Held at the Family Life Centre, the fair was part of October’s Older Persons Month, being celebrated under the theme: United Nations (UN) Principles for Older Persons: Independence, Participation, Care, Self-Fulfilment and Dignity.
Look Loy also encouraged senior residents to remain active in society, noting that such participation contributed to improvements in their physical and mental condition. “Don’t limit yourselves; get involved in formulating government policies and join local movements and association” she added.
She said that the ministry has adopted policies to benefit older persons, including funding residential facilities. Two of these, one in North Side and the other in East End, are scheduled to come on stream in the near future. Older Persons Month Chairperson Dawn Rankine said the event allowed seniors to gather and discuss common health issues and other concerns that affected their well-being. It was also a chance for seniors, many of whom had not seen each other for sometime, to interact. Rankine added that the lack of good health impacts older persons’ rights to independence, dignity and self-fulfilment. “When seniors are unwell, their mobility can be impaired and they’re unable to assert their independence and take care of their business,” she said.
Senior Janilee Clifford an 80-year-old Gloria Ebanks said they she felt that the fair was beneficial and important to older people. “It helped boost our confidence and sense of self-worth by guiding us towards focusing on our physical and spiritual state. It has been a great day,” they said.
Humans at end of road
(AP): Human evolution is grinding to a halt, according to a leading genetics expert. The gloomy message from Professor Steve Jones is: this is as good as it gets. Prof Jones, from the Department of Genetics, Evolution and Environment at University College London, believes the mechanisms of evolution are winding down in the human race. At least in the developed world, humans are now as close to utopia as they are ever likely to be, he argues. Go to article.
Local legal team picks up Hedge fund gong
(CNS): Working with the Bear
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High-networth tourism hit
(CNS): Part of the Cayman Islands Department of Tourism’s strategyto avoid the worst of the global recession has been to target high net worth individuals, which the minister has described as recession proof. However, reports from Florida suggest that this may not be the case and experts are warning against putting too much faith in wealthy travellers. According to one sales director of a luxury South Beach resort, he will be cutting rates this winter.
Speaking to the Miami Herald, Jorge Collazo sales director for the Setai predicts a sizable number of guests this winter will balk at the South Beach resort’s $1,100 standard daily rate. After five years of profiting a booming financial sector and housing market, luxury hotels may now face declining fortunes. Their performance during these hard times could show whether the boom years brought too many pricey hotels to South Florida.
”If you look at the Delano and some of the other luxury properties on Miami Beach, their occupancy is lower. It will be interesting to see if they can hold the line” on room rates, said Mark Lunt, a lodging analyst for Ernst & Young in Miami. ”If they can, it tells us Miami has been successful in offering a well-balanced portfolio” of luxury hotels, he said. "It’s really the only sector that saw an increase in supply in rooms over the last 10 years.”
While air arrivals remain steady here in Cayman, with more than three quarters of the islands’ tourists still coming from the United States, a lot less spending on vacations is expected in the coming months. Moreover, with a reduction of more than 40 percent in spending by cruise passengers, according to government statistics, Cayman’s tourism product is already looking shaky. If the main cornerstone of appealing to the rich fails too, Cayman could be in for a serious downturn in fortunes next year.
Speaking at the recent Annual Tourism Conference in his state of the industry address, the Minister for Tourism, Charles Clifford, said he was optimistic about the industry’s future.
“In this time of economic uncertainty in many parts of the world, where the terms ‘takeover bids’, ‘bailouts’ and ‘bankruptcy’ are becoming all too common, it is indeed a considerable testament to all of you, key stakeholders in our tourism sector, that I am able to report that the state of the Cayman Islands tourism industry remains good,” he said.
Acknowledging the challenges ahead, however, he said the Government and private sector have aggressively pursued mitigation strategies to shore up business, which included and targeting high net worth visitors who are less vulnerable to recessionary forces. Whether they are or not remains to be seen.
Business Women to march against violence
(CNS): In order to mark the suffering of women at the hands of abusers the Business and Professional Women’s Cub, of Grand Cayman will be holding its annual Silent Witness March on Saturday 18 October 2008. Each year the BPW holds this event to pay tribute to those who have been victims of violence.
The march starts promptly at 12:30 at the Government Administration Building, (Glass House) passing by the Immigration building, the Central Police Station, and the Courts Office and ending on the steps of the Legislative Assemble at 1:30 for a brief ceremony.
The Silent Witness March originated in the United States in 1990 as a reaction by women artists and writers to the growing number of victims of domestic violence they noticed in their small town in Minnesota. The solution was to speak out by creating 26 free-standing life-sized red wooden figures bearing the name of awoman who once lived among them whose life had been violently ended at the hands of an ex-husband, partner, or acquaintance.
A 27th figure was added to represent those countless women whose murders went unsolved or were erroneously ruled accidental. The organizers called the figures the Silent Witnesses, which were escorted along with 500 other women who showed up for that first silent procession.
The organisation aims to promote peace, healing and responsibility in adult relationships in order to eliminate domestic murders by the year 2010 and to promote successful community-based domestic violence reduction efforts in order to reach zero domestic murders by 2010.
According to the United Nations the gender violence causes more ill health and deaths around the world than traffic accidents and malaria combined. It even rivals cancer as a cause of death and incapacity among women aged 16 to 44. The World Health Organization says that almost ¾ of women who are murdered were in situations where their intimate partners abused them before death.
The Business & Professional Women’s Club of the Cayman Islands ("BPW") is a non-partisan charter group of the International Federation of Business & Professional women founded in 1930. Its major goals include working for high standards of service in business, encourage the education of women and girls to acquire education, occupational training and advance education and to work for equal opportunities and status for women in economic, civil and political life in all countries.
For further information contact BPWGRANDCAYMAN@GMAIL.COM
Parents complain to police about Brac drivers
(CNS): Motorists on Cayman Brac are being warned by the police to stop putting children at risk by failing to stop for school buses during the busy pick-up and drop-off times. “We have received complaints from residents about motorists overtaking school buses while children are getting on and off,” said Area Commander, Acting Chief Inspector Adrian Barnett of the Royal Cayman Islands Police Service said. “This is extremely dangerous.”
He added that motorists should remember it is an offence under the traffic law to pass school buses when their lights are flashing and they have slowed down or stopped to allow children to get on or off. This applies to vehicles approaching school buses from the front (i.e. oncoming traffic) as well as those approaching from the rear.
In addition, drivers are asked to payattention to the 15 mph speed limits which have been set in dedicated school zones to ensure the safety of youngsters. Warning lights flash within school zones to indicate the need for drivers to reduce speeds to 15 mph or less, for short stretches of road ranging from 200 feet to 700 feet outside schools. Lights have been programmed to flash between 7:30 and 8:45 in the morning and 2:30 and 3:30 in the afternoon.
Anyone with information about crime taking place in the Cayman Islands should contact their local police station or Crime Stoppers on 800-8477 (TIPS). All persons calling crime stoppers remain anonymous, and are eligible for a reward of up to $1000, should their information lead to an arrest or recovery of property/drugs.