The British West Indies Championships was an annual track and field competition between nations involved in the West Indies Federation and several other Caribbean nations with a British colonial history. Like the federation itself, the competition was short-lived: first held in 1957, it ceased after 1965. The competition was created at a time of much sporting co-operation within the region – a British West Indies team was sent to both the 1959 Pan American Games and the 1960 Summer Olympics.[1]

The first event in 1957, held in Kingston, Jamaica, was supported by retired Olympic sprint medallist Herb McKenley.[2] The national championships of the host nation was sometimes replaced by the regional championships.[3]

The championships featured prominent Caribbean men's sprinters of the period, including Commonwealth champion Tom Robinson, and Jamaican Olympic medallists Lennox Miller, George Kerr and Malcolm Spence. Other prominent champions of this event were hurdler Keith Gardner and high jumper Ernle Haisley (both Commonwealth champions). Women were not invited to the first two editions of the competition, but a women's programme was introduced from 1959 onwards.[1]

Editions

Ed. Year City Country Dates No. of
events 		No. of
nations 		No. of
athletes 		Winning nation
1st 1957 Kingston Jamaica 18  Jamaica
2nd 1958 Port of Spain Trinidad and Tobago 18  Trinidad and Tobago
3rd 1959 Georgetown British Guiana 27  British Guiana
4th 1960 Kingston Jamaica 31  Jamaica
5th 1964 Kingston Jamaica 25  Jamaica
6th 1965 Bridgetown Barbados 28  Jamaica

Participating nations

References

  1. ^ a b British West Indies Championships. GBR Athletics. Retrieved on 2015-03-21.
  2. ^ Bahamas Track Men Seek Team Berths. The Miami News (1957-07-21). Retrieved on 2015-03-21.
  3. ^ Trinidad & Tobago National Championships. NAAATT. Retrieved on 2015-03-21.
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