Patrick Werleman has been re-elected as Chairman of the Caribbean Regional Anti-Doping Organization (RADO). Werleman, the Member Country Representative (MCR) for Aruba, was returned unopposed during the 2022 Annual General Meeting which ended on Sunday May 8th in Curaçao.
Werleman has expressed his gratitude to members for entrusting him with a second term, particularly after the negative impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on anti-doping programmes in the Caribbean. He says the main objectives of the Caribbean RADO over the next three years include improving communication with various key stakeholders, and the further development of anti-doping programmes in Member Countries.
“Every Member Country should have an active anti-doping programme that includes a solid education plan, and of course testing. These are the basic requirements for compliance with the [World Anti-Doping] Code. Education is the fundamental tool to create awareness, so this should be an area of focus in each Member Country.”
Werleman also wants to develop additional strategic partnerships to positively impact the sustainability of the Organization. He is joined on the Executive Committee by returning Vice Chairman – Dr Adrian Lorde of Barbados along with Directors Dr Karen Pilgrim of Guyana and Ephraim Penn of the British Virgin Islands who were all re-elected unopposed. There is one new member on the Executive Committee as Rheeza Grant of Trinidad and Tobago was also elected unopposed for the remaining vacant position of Director.
The Caribbean RADO AGM was held May 7-8 in Willemstad, Curaçao at the Renaissance Wind Creek Curaçao Resort. Seventeen (17) of the eighteen (18) Member Countries participated in the two-day hybrid meeting which facilitated delegates both in-person and online.
A Sport Diplomacy Workshop was conducted on the opening day of the session by Dr. J, Simon Rofe, Sport Diplomacy expert at the Centre for International Studies and Diplomacy, SOAS, University of London. During the workshop, there was a special guest presentation from IOC Vice-President Nicole Hoevertsz who shared valuable knowledge on navigating relationships and building strategic partnerships at the highest levels in sport.
On Day 2, participants focused on Risk Assessment and Test Distribution Planning for the Anti-Doping Programmes in their respective countries with representatives of the World Anti-Doping Agency – María José Pesce Cutri, Director, Latin American Office; Ieva Lukosiute-Stanikuniene, Senior Manager, NADO/RADO Relations and Federico Perroni Sánchez, Manager, Latin American Office.
Werleman is looking forward to even greater collaboration among Member Country Representatives.
“During the Board meeting, we took off our jackets and rolled up our sleeves and got to work, with representatives focusing on developing their testing programmes. Everyone was there to support each other. This is how we want to continue to work with our Member Country Representatives, moving forward – side-by-side, shoulder-to-shoulder.”
“There is nothing more satisfying than making progress together. We have lots of challenges ahead, but I am totally confident that, working together, we will overcome all of these challenges and lead the Caribbean RADO to greater heights of success,” he says.
St Croix, Virgin Islands (US) has been chosen as the host of the 2023 AGM.
