 The 2024 crypto games is less than three weeks away and hundreds of the region's best young athletes will descend on Grenada, the spice aisle for the 51st staging. Of course that will be live on Sportsmax on that Easter weekend. Some athletes have already gone through their respective trials including host nation Grenada as well as St. Kittson Nevis and Trinidad and Tobago, St. Vincent and the Grenadines and perennial champions Jamaica. Conrad Francis, president of the Grenada Athletic Association and chair of the operations committee joins us now by a zoom to discuss Grenada's readiness to host the games. Conrad, welcome to the Sportsmax zone, haven't spoken to you in a while. Talk to us quickly about the spice aisle and its anticipation of welcoming the region's best athletes for the Carifta games on the Easter weekend. How ready are you? Pleasant good afternoon to you and good old listeners to your station. I would say that we are quite ready and we are just putting the finishing touches on as you know it's just a couple of weeks away so I would say that we are ready. Yeah, I remember your first staging in 2000. I was covering those games for the Caribbean Media Corporation at the time in your brand new stadium. A lot has changed in Grenada since then and you have hosted again since then in 2016. How much would have your experiences hosting in 2000 and 2016 assisted in making sure that things work well again for 2024 because I thought they were pretty good in 2000 and 2016 as well. Are you saying that the last time you were in Grenada it was in 2000? No, I've been there since that but I've not been there. I didn't cover the 2016 Carifta games so I was just mentioning that of the two times that you've hosted it before, I was there for the 2000 hosting. I've been there since then but not for track and field. Because I was about to say that you have really missed a lot because our country has changed a lot since after Ivan in 2004 and we rebuilt our stadium in 2013 and hosted the 2016 Carifta games so again this is the third time around and we are hosting on a brand new surface. We have, through the efforts of the government, the support of the government, we are able to have the track resurface. It's a new surface. It is being on company, the same company that lead the track at Oregon and as you know that track is a fast track and so far we've had like three games on the track and the timings have been pretty fast. So we expect a high standard from the games. We expect some very good performances from our athletes. As a matter of fact, as we speak, our inter-call games is taking place and I don't know if you know that but our inter-call is the mini-version of boys and girls camps in the Southern Carolina so it's the biggest thing that you can never see in track and field. So that is taking place on the track as we speak and we are getting some very fast times so we expect that the Carifta games would be a super one. Yeah well I know some Grenadians who would not suggest that it is the mini-version of the boys and girls camps because they think it is better than boys and girls camps but I get the picture because I know how big the inter-call games are. From a local standpoint though Conrad, how strong is the Grenada track and field age group program at the moment by way of you know making a mark as the host nation because you like to see when nations host the Carifta games that they have athletes that can build up excitement for the fans not that they aren't excited about other star athletes from other countries. Our track and field program has had its highs and lows and I would say at this point in time we probably do not have the hype among the team. We cannot say that we have Anderson Peters or Hezlan Regis or Lyndon Victor in the weekend but what we are promising our fans is that if they come out they will notice and actually see some new stars will be born because our athletes they are working hard and they are eager to satisfy their home fans. The turnout I'll have to ask you how has the response been when it comes to ticket sales and just the word on the street you know are the Grenadians really excited for this event are they you know eager and coming out to support because I always find like a full state I'm not here you can you hear me now just a little better yeah so I was asking you how has the ticket sales been because you know once the turnout is big for an event like this it creates a different atmosphere I'm still not getting the just a question because I'm not hearing properly okay yeah she's just asking about the ticket sales and how is the excitement building for the event for the local fans oh okay yeah but ticket sales has been going very good so far in fact that the main stand is sold out and we have sales are picking up in the secondary provision so the main stand was just over two thousand five hundred five hundred people and then we have the features which can go two thousand and then the secondary pavilion something like two thousand two hundred and seventy three so that is picking up very well the main stand is completely is completely sold out and in the next coming days and weeks we expect that the earths will be sold out or people are a track and field people and and and they love track and field they come out to all our needs and we'll have little practice meets and and people come out and the turnout they support their athletes and we expect the same for the character games and they will not be only coming out to to support our athletes but they look at the Caribbean as the artists of the Caribbean as our athletes also so they will be cheering for for all the athletes of the of the career and career man we see because as we say to them don't miss that opportunity to see these athletes perform because these are the artists that you see in the next couple of years performing at the world level at the Olympic level so we want you to be to be there to see them so that we can see in the future when they achieve that you have been there and you saw them so we believe that they would buy that slow and come out and support our athletes whether they are Canadians Jamaicans Bahamians they will support and one important factor is that lands we have always stage successful games and athletes as well as fans as well as officials they love coming to Guinea and that is reflected in the numbers of athletes that are coming for these games in fact these games will be the biggest character games ever in terms of participants we have registered those for 780 athletes and officials to take part in the games it starts as shown us that that will be the biggest games of the character history so and a lot of fans are coming here a lot of spectators are coming in so we expect lands if you're looking for if you have a book in a hotel you may not get get a room yeah well the sportsmax team has already booked or or and reserved or or spot so there's there's there's no chance I was missing missing out missing out there but but Conrad you said something very important just now and it's the fact that a lot of our world stars and Olympic stars are born out of Carifter competition I remember in 2000 when I was there and Veronica Campbell was a very very impressive winner of the 200 meters Amadea Francis who was at time at the time the NACAC president which made him the IWF vice president it was the IWF at that time and not world athletics he predicted when he saw her running there that she would have been an Olympic champion and that you know is indelibly written in my mind when I look at some of the stars that we saw at the Carifter games and it was so easy based on the quality that you were seeing to predict that they would transition in into world stars right there in in Grenada we know of the history of Kirani James who the stadium is named after and Anderson Peters who both went on to be to be world champions and I agree with you Conrad if you can expand on that that there's no question that when the fans come out to see the Carifter games this coming Easter weekend they will be seeing some athletes in another three or four years that will be world stars we think yes lansom there has been a plethora of of athletes that were born at the Carifter games and you can you can continue to name them I mean you have the the world world medalists from from the British Virgin Islands the the hoodler right all these athletes they were they were born they were made from from from the Carifter games that's kairan master kairan master but yeah in in in fact yeah and in fact mark master started starting his hoodling career in Grenada he attended a huddle's workshop which um which coalman did for us and I think it was in 1998 you mean the Jamaican coach fits Coleman the Jamaican coach fits Coleman yeah fits Coleman and and and he was a participant in that workshop and that where he was founded so and went on to Carifter greatness and now he is a world world medalist so there are many many athletes that were born from a Carifter games and Amadio said it said it right um we can even speak about Lucien Lucien Boat he was a Carifter medalist I'll be probably not in the forward in the 100 but 200 I think and 400 leaders so it is important that our region support our athletes right and as we as we say in our team it's it's one people one region one Carifter games you're 19 you're 19 our region so it is it goes beyond beyond performances and the track you know it has the Carifter games is embedded in the politics in the in the region as as as you know if I wouldn't want to rehearse the history of the games yeah but um we all know that the games was founded by I mean born in the politician turns shaped the character after after the Carifter games you know and it really emphasizes the unity of our Caribbean region and if it's one thing that unites us after power being I don't know if I'm permitted to say that after the West Indies cricket team is is the is the Carifter games you know so I think it's a very very important factor and I think our people and knows that and they will come out and support our athletes and be there to say at least I was there when this athlete this Jamaican athlete won the hundred meters or or this um solution athlete won 100 years yeah and before you go um Conrad I want you to you you touched on it earlier on about Grenada's current strength and you did say that you have you know ups and downs during your your you know during the the the history of the Carifter games but you have 186 medals 54 gold in your history um ahead of bigger countries like Guyana and and Saint Lucia so how satisfied are you then with what Grenada has offered over the years to the Carifter games we know you have some standouts that is that is that is not in dispute but how would you measure the overall input that Grenada has been able to to apply as far as Carifter games track and field is concerned yeah yeah our effort has been tremendous over the years and for a small country just 100,000 in population we believe that that the contribution that we have made for the Carifter games is enormous and and that is exemplified for the more you know success at the at the world level because all of our athletes who will reach elite standard and have won medals at whether it's Olympics or World Championships they were product of of our Carifter team and it speaks to to our structure we have a very good structure in Grenada and it is it is very similar to that of of Jamaica where where all our schools from even preparing these schools they have their track meets and our season is packed is packed with track meets and people come out and support and give these athletes give these athletes support so we have a very defined pathway for all our athletes and and we provide the competition for them can we do more I will say yes there's always room at the top and we are always I'm willing and there to support our athletes and and develop programs so that we can on earth more more talented athletes we have a very rich history at the Carifter games from the very first Carifter games I think it was in 1972 I think only six countries participated the other six or eight countries participated in that games and Grenada was one of those because as you know as we have celebrated our 100th anniversary this year so we have been formed a very very long time and our people have been participating in track and field events and our history will show that right through right of at the very first Carifter games you won six medals at Eros Repia won the Javelin which last it was a record which lasted for over over almost 30 something years right and we had Marish Williams winning the five thousand in 1981 that was only broken by by your Jamaican star star over the Carifter games his name just slipped me now Campbell would it be Campbell Kimora Campbell Kimora Campbell yeah so so we have laid a real foundation at the Carifter games and it has that has put us above most of of our OECS countries and as a matter of fact in in in in the year 2001 we came second behind Jamaica with with 22 medals and then the next year in the Bahamas we were third where we won the most medals ever 22 22 medals so our contribution towards the Carifter games is is well documented and we think that that this year we will we will put on a very good performance at this point I cannot see we're going to we're going to do this or we're going to do that and I leave it for our people to come out share our athletes on give them your support and at the end of the day they will be satisfied with our team performances yeah I think that's a that's a good way to put the lid on this discussion Conrad always a pleasure talking to you and all the best with your local organizing committee and getting things ready for the Carifter games as we said to our viewers sportsmax will have live coverage of the Carifter games so that Easter weekend Saturday through to Monday and we'll be in touch Conrad and all the best to you and your team and hopefully the Carifter games will be as big and as exciting as it has always been thanks yeah thank you Lance and it is a pleasure and and we're looking forward to welcome sportsmax in covering cover the games we are preparing well for you yes and we hope that you you will enjoy we will I'm sure we'll be back with more on the sportsmax zone after this