Ephraim Penn elected as Caribbean Representative for Commonwealth Games Federation Sports Committee

September 6, 2019 by
Representatives of the Caribbean Commonwealth Games Associations with the Hon. Espérance Nyirasafari, Minister of Sports and Culture, Government of the Republic of Rwanda, Dame Louise Martin, DBE, President, Commonwealth Games Federation, the Rt. Honourable Patricia Scotland, QC, Commonwealth Secretary General, and Fortuna Belrose, Caribbean Regional CGF Vice President.

Dame Louise Martin DBE (Scotland) was re-elected as the Commonwealth Games Federation (CGF) President for a second four-year term by acclamation by delegates from the 71 nations and territories of the Commonwealth attending the CGF General Assembly at the Kigali Convention Centre in Kigali, Rwanda, September 3 – 6. She became the first female to hold this office in the history of the Commonwealth Sports Movement when she was elected in 2015.

Ephraim Penn, President of the Virgin Islands (UK) Commonwealth Games Association (BVICGA) was elected to the position of CGF Sports Committee Caribbean Representative.

The quadrennial elections saw three CGF Vice-Presidents elected: Kereyn Smith (New Zealand) Chris Jenkins (Wales) and Bruce Robertson (Canada).

Three new Regional Vice-Presidents were also elected to the Executive Board: Americas with Judy Simons J.P (Bermuda), Asia with Chris Chan (Singapore) and Europe with Harry Murphy (Gibraltar).

The three other Regional Vice-Presidents were all re-elected: Africa with Miriam Moyo (Zambia), Caribbean with Fortuna Belrose (Saint Lucia) and Oceania with Hugh Graham (Cook Islands).

In addition to Penn’s election for the Caribbean, results for every position on the Sports Committee included Sani Ndanusa (Nigeria) for Africa, Linda Cuthbert (Canada) for the Americas, Lt. Gen. Syed Arif Hasan (Pakistan) for Asia, Helen Phillips (Wales) for Europe and Craig Phillips (Australia) for Oceania.

Ephraim Penn, Caribbean Representative, Commonwealth Games Federation Sports Committee with the Hon. Espérance Nyirasafari, Minister of Sports and Culture, Government of the Republic of Rwanda

“Being elected to represent the Caribbean is indeed a great honour and I acknowledge and respect the trust and confidence that is being placed in me to act in the best interests of the region,” said Penn. “I have been in seat as the BVICGA president for the past 11 years and have served in various roles on other sports related bodies and advisory committees locally and regionally since 2004. I have forged good and open relationships with my Caribbean counterparts as well as those representing countries across the world. I look forward to working with CGF Sports Committee on behalf of the Caribbean CGAs and am excited to be part of a team that will continue to move the Commonwealth Sports agenda forward.”

The Sports Committee typically meets biannually. Its key functions are to provide technical expertise and support to the Executive Board in relation to the development and management of all aspects of the Commonwealth Games and Commonwealth Youth Games sports programmes. The Committee also engages with International Sports Federations, future host cities and bidding cities.

Penn, who has an Executive Masters of Sports Management (MEMOS)from the University of Lyon, France along with a Masters in Economic Planning and Bachelors in public Affairs from Florida Atlantic University, Florida, was a member of the VI’s 1st Track & Field team at the 1975 Central American and Caribbean (CAC) Athletic Championship, Ponce, Puerto Rico and the 1976 Carifta Games, Nassau, Bahamas. He was a member of the national Softball team that competed in the 1987 Pan Am Games in Indianapolis, USA and which placed 4th – the highest team sport accomplishment at the Games for the VI – and a member of the national Softball team at the 1993 CAC Games, Ponce, Puerto Rico.

During his current tenure as president of the national Olympic Committee / Commonwealth Games Association since 2008, Penn established the Elite Athlete Programme in partnership with the Ministry of Sports and was instrumental in composing the National Sports Policy of the VI. He established the VI’s Anti-Doping Commission and is a current board member of the Regional Anti-Doping Organization of the Caribbean (RADO). He also serves as the chairman of the Long Term Athlete Development Steering Committee and is a member of the Panam Sports New Sports Commission. Following Hurricane Irma, Penn secured funding and support from Panam Sports for the rebuild of sports facilities in the VI.

Penn sat as president of the BVI Amateur Athletic Association (now known as the BVI Athletics Association) from 2006 – 2008 and led the executive which was responsible for the installation of the first MONDO Class 2 rubberized track in the VI.

In addition to the elections, the General Assembly saw the approval of a refreshed Transformation 2022 strategy and the continued evolution of the CGF’s Governance and Regulations.

Deliberations took place to further evolve the Commonwealth Games Sports Programme while the new CGF Brand and Logo was formally showcased for the very first time.

The General Assembly marked the ten-year anniversary of Rwanda joining the list of Commonwealth nations in 2009.

It was staged a year before the country hosts the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) in 2020 with Commonwealth Secretary General the Rt Hon Patricia Scotland QC in attendance where she delivered a formal address to the Assembly.

Rwanda itself is the newest member of the Commonwealth, and the second country (as well as Mozambique) in the Commonwealth without historic UK ties.

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New Home for CGF as Her Majesty The Queen Launches New Commonwealth Hub

June 9, 2016 by

CGF President Louise Martin CBE introduced Her Majesty The Queen to Commonwealth athletes Sasha Corbin, Ali Glasse-Davies and Helen Housby at the launch of the new Commonwealth Hub on June 9. Photo: CGF

CGF President Louise Martin CBE introduced Her Majesty The Queen to Commonwealth athletes Sasha Corbin, Ali Glasse-Davies and Helen Housby at the launch of the new Commonwealth Hub on June 9. Photo: CGF

Her Majesty The Queen today launched a new Commonwealth Hub which will bring Commonwealth organisations, including the Commonwealth Games Federation, together in the same location to create a collaborative, dynamic and innovative way of working.

The three Commonwealth organisations that will move to a new combined centre of Commonwealth activity – Marlborough House and Quadrant House – are the Commonwealth Games Federation, the Royal Commonwealth Society and the Commonwealth Local Government Forum. It is expected that other Commonwealth organisations will join the hub in due course with Quadrant House being renamed Commonwealth House.

The Queen officially launched the new Hub during a visit to Marlborough House ahead of her official 90th birthday celebrations which will take place this weekend and will be attended by representatives from 53 Commonwealth countries. As part of the celebrations, CGF President Louise Martin CBE introduced Her Majesty to Commonwealth athletes Sasha Corbin, Helen Housby and Ali Glasse-Davies.

The new Commonwealth Hub will help to deliver the Secretary-General’s vision to work more closely with all Commonwealth organisations to honour the values of the Commonwealth charter and the commitments on health, education, climate change, good governance, equality and the rule of law in the Sustainable Development Goals and COP 21. It also delivers one of the CGF’s Transformation 2022 goals, to co-locate and align with Commonwealth organisations to maximise collaboration opportunities.

The Commonwealth Hub will bring the Commonwealth Games to the heart of the Commonwealth headquarters and will encourage more young people to become engaged in Commonwealth issues. It will also provide a focal point for reaching to mayors and elected councillors and their local communities right across the Commonwealth. Other plans for the Commonwealth Hub include an education centre in the newly named Commonwealth House.
The CGF will move from its current premises in London’s Old Street over the summer.

Patricia Scotland QC, Commonwealth Secretary-General, said:
“I’m delighted to welcome Her Majesty to launch this coming together of the Commonwealth family in a new Commonwealth Hub. We’re all working to deliver the Sustainable Development Goals, the Paris Climate Agreement and the Commonwealth Charter so it’s right that we look to cement this relationship with the creation of Commonwealth House.

“I would like to thank the three organisations who have joined us at the start of this journey and I look forward to us being joined by others as we have a better conversation with the public about our priorities as a Commonwealth.”

Louise Martin CBE, Commonwealth Games Federation President, said:
“Partnerships sit at the heart of Transformation 2022, our new vision to move from a four- yearly event cycle to a year-round movement connecting athletes and citizens across the Commonwealth through sport. We rely on and enjoy incredibly positive partnerships with colleagues across the Commonwealth family to promote the Commonwealth, deliver projects or showcase initiatives on the level playing field of sport. I’ve no doubt our combined move to Commonwealth House will realise an inspiring and impactful new era of Commonwealth-wide collaborations and celebrations built on shared values.”

Carl Wright, Commonwealth Local Government Forum Secretary-General, said:
“This Commonwealth hub, based at Commonwealth House, is an exciting development that will help us better coordinate our work with other Commonwealth organisations and provide added value to our members and citizens of the Commonwealth to help deliver development, local government, good governance and a better quality of life for the 2.3 billion citizens we and our members serve.”

Claire Whitaker OBE, Chair of the Royal Commonwealth Society, said:
“This is a very exciting moment in the 148 year history of the Royal Commonwealth Society and we are proud to be collaborating with other Commonwealth colleagues on this exciting initiative. The Commonwealth Hub represents an aspirational and exciting step forward for the Commonwealth to make the best possible use of its many and varied assets. I anticipate invigorated collaboration across the Commonwealth family and a more vibrant and creative presence for the Commonwealth itself.”

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