A recent trip by sporting officials can help boost Tobago’s sport development.

Local sporting officials recently visited the Cayman Islands to look at their approach to sportstourism. Secretary of Sport and Youth Affairs, Jomo Pitt, indicated there were a few elementsthat Tobago can adopt. This includes an Under-15 football tournament he described as “intriguing” for a couple of reasons.

“One, the ability of Cayman Airways to facilitate free travel to Cayman Islands from any of their hubs; so wherever Cayman Airways flew to or from, teams were allowed to fly for free. That definitely caught my interest,” Pitt said.

The Sport Secretary said he was open to exploring the idea of a similar arrangement with Caribbean Airlines.

Secondly, he stated that, “They have at least one professional academy participating in this tournament. Two years ago, they had Manchester United. This year, and last year, they have DC United from the MLS [Major League Soccer] in the US.”

In addition, he indicated that these professional teams usually sent scouts to the matches to recruit promising players for their academy, which could lead to contracts for young Tobago players in future.