Lifetime Award for Hawthorne - JATAFCA serves up National Coaching Day honours for long and distinguished service

KINGSTON:

Long-serving Danny Hawthorne is among three coaches to be bestowed with the Lifetime Award by the Jamaica Track & Field Coaches Association (JATAFCA).

Awards will be presented to track and field coaches for long and distinguished service to the nation - on the heels of a very successful 2025 athletics season - at both the junior and senior levels. The ceremony will be held on November 22 under the theme, 'Sustainability of Athletics Through the Development of Coaches'.

Hawthorne, who has been head coach at St Mary High, Wolmer's Boys', St Jago High and his alma mater, Dinthill Technical, where he played on the daCosta Cup team as goalkeeper and made the All-daCosta Cup team, in the early '80s.

He holds IAAF Level 3 coaching certification and is a senior lecturer at GC Foster College.

Former World 100m champion Yohan Blake numbers among prized athletes to have come under his care, along with Nickel Ashmeade and Nikole Mitchell.

VERSATILE OFFICIAL

Hawthorne is a versatile sporting official, who was also one of Jamaica's top football referees.

Other persons who will be presented with the JATAFCA Lifetime Award are Leo Brown and Rohan Oliver.

The accolades number among 15 JATAFCA awards up for presentation and come as a recognition of National Coaches Day, which has been designated as October 6 (yesterday) by the national track and field coaches association, in tandem with other national and international sporting bodies.

Awards will be in five categories: Silver (20-25 years), Gold (26-30 years), Platinum (30-40 years), Lifetime Award (Over 40 years) and the Master Coach Award.

Nominations were submitted by members of the association and the awardees were selected by a committee.

Tom Brumlik, coach of Navasky Anderson, the national record holder for the 800 metres, will be presented with the Hector-Smith Master Coach Award, named after the late Edward Hector and Eldemire Smith - for his guidance of Anderson - who made the 800m final at the World Athletics Championships in Tokyo, Japan; and setting a national record.

OTHER AWARDS

Other JATAFCA awards will be presented as follows:

Platinum awardees - Marlene Hawthorne, Richard Johnson, Rayon Patterson; Gold awardees - Dave Anderson, Shawn Cunningham, Patrick Dawson, Michael McIntosh,

Aston Tomlin; Silver awardees - Kevin Brown, Dwight Jones, Ricardo Williams, Marlon Wilkie.

JATAFCA is the internationally recognised body for Jamaica's track and field coaches; covering Primary, Secondary, Tertiary, Club and the Elite level. The Association is an affiliate of the Jamaica Administrative Athletics Association (JAAA) and is endorsed by World Athletics. It is also the representative body for all track and field coaches in Jamaica.

October 6 presents an annual opportunity to focus on the work and commitment of coaches across all sports ... across many of the federations, helping to bring focus to some of the issues and challenges facing the profession. It is also used to celebrate the achievements of coaches on a national level through ceremonies and awards.

On September 27, 2022 Governor General, Sir Patrick Linton Allen, declared by proclamation that October 6 be recognised and celebrated as National Coaches Day in Jamaica, and encourage all citizens to "join in year-round efforts to, among other things, recognise the involvement and impact of coaches on the development of our people and the national psyche.

He went on to urge all citizens to "participate in the activities designed for the observance of National Coaches Day".