Last year, she walked with the Ministry of Youth, Sports and Culture’s Junior Athlete of the Year Award. This year, tennis player Sydney Clarke is the ministry’s 2020 overall athlete of the year after receiving the most likes on Facebook between Friday and Sunday.
The announcement was made on a live television special on ZNS, ‘2020 Sports Champions Countdown’ hosted by ZNS sportscaster Charles Fisher on Monday night. It was the culmination of the ministry’s month-long activities for November that was celebrated as Sports Heritage Month under the theme ‘We Rise’.
“I jumped up and down the house shouting with joy while telling my friends and family the news when they announced that I won the award,” Clarke said.
The award took on more of a people’s choice award process where the public voted on the social media platform Facebook from Friday to Sunday. The person with the most likes was awarded the Athlete of the Year for 2020 nationally. Clarke topped 19 other finalists.
The 19-year-old said she was surprised by the process this year and knew that the other nominees had a lot of great accomplishments under their portfolios.
“I don’t think everyone was clear on the instructions which caused a bit of confusion, I assume – voting polls not as competitive. However, I felt the playing field was even for everyone because the public voted who would be the winner. It gave collegiate athletes like myself a chance to compete with the professionals who are constantly adding accomplishments to their portfolio,” Clarke stated.
Equestrian rider Anna Camille “Millie” Vlasov got the second most likes. University of Purdue sprinter Samson Colebrooke and tennis professional player Justin Roberts were third and fourth respectively. Receiving the fifth most likes was Major League Baseball (MLB) player Jasrado “Jazz” Chisholm.
Finishing sixth to 10th respectively were Laura Morley (swimming), Shaunae Miller-Uibo (track and field), Chavano “Buddy” Hield (basketball), Izaak Bastian (swimming) and Steven Gardiner (track and field).
“Being able to add another accomplishment to my portfolio feels great. It feels amazing to be selected, going up against the big dogs like Miller-Uibo, Hield, Gardiner and others. I am ecstatic to be recognized as one of the top 20 athletes for 2020. The other athletes are very talented and have done a great job representing our country well,” Clarke stated.
The number two ranked female tennis player in The Bahamas is a freshman at the University of Alabama at Birmingham in Birmingham, Alabama. Although the COVID-19 pandemic affected her competition here, she was able to play this past semester in college. Clarke has played five singles matches and has just one loss. In doubles play, she has played four matches and has two wins and two losses.
“This will be a year to remember because it was filled with tons of surprises,” Clarke said. “Despite COVID-19 affecting the entire word, I was able to go off to school and continue to play the sport I love. It made me appreciate the simple things in life that we take for granted.”
Clarke was the runner-up in last year’s Bahamas Lawn Tennis Association’s (BLTA) Giorgio Baldacci National Women’s Tournament. She booked her place on this year’s women’s national team for the Billie Jean King Cup, formerly Fed Cup Tournament. However, that tournament was postponed to 2021 due to the presence of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Clarke heads back to Alabama in January to start conference play in Conference USA in the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I. Before that, she is looking to play in the BLTA’s tennis nationals if it gets the go-ahead later this month. Organizers for the national tournament are awaiting approval from the Competent Authority on the advice of health officials.
Sydney Clarke is the daughter of Bernard and Shayvon Clarke.
The post Clarke walks away with athlete of the year award appeared first on The Nassau Guardian.
source https://thenassauguardian.com/clarke-walks-away-with-athlete-of-the-year-award/
No comments:
Post a Comment