Post by Bornthrilla on Nov 30, 2007 12:28:59 GMT -5
Premier of Bermuda wants sports, history to mix on island
By Sal Ruibal, USA TODAY
The word Bermuda conjures images of crisp knee-high shorts and croquet balls rolling on impossibly green grass.
If the man who runs the 23-square-mile island nation 600 miles east of North Carolina has his way, however, Bermuda could also become famous for college basketball players in knee-length shorts scrambling for the ball on hardwood floors.
Dr. Ewart Brown, Premier of this self-governing British Overseas Territory, is leaving his emerald isle this week to scout the Big Apple Classic on Saturday at New York City's famed Madison Square Garden. The one-day event pits Virginia Union against Bowie State and Hampton vs. Howard.
Brown is no stranger to the four historically black universities: In the 1960s he earned both a B.S. in chemistry and a medical doctorate at Howard, where he also ran on the school's track team.
His mission to New York goes far beyond rooting for the Bison. Brown, who is also Bermuda's minister of tourism and transport, sees sporting events involving historically black colleges and universities as a way to connect his majority-black population with visiting African-American student-athletes.
"Our people need to see that they can aspire to more, that they can become doctors and educators and leaders," he says. "And the teams and their fans can visit us to learn more about their history and the African Diaspora."
Much of the island's black population can trace their heritage to an 1835 incident involving an American slave ship that blew off-course and landed in Bermuda. Slavery was outlawed there, so the forced exiles were allowed to stay.
Brown, who was active in the student black power movement at Howard, left a lucrative medical practice in Los Angeles in 1983 to return to his native Bermuda with the aim of improving life for the citizens who weren't sharing in the prosperity created by the 13,000 tax-sheltered international corporations that call the island home.
Brown was elected to a seat in the nearly 400-year-old parliament, then became minister of tourism. He used his post to change the island's stodgy tourist industry, attracting low-cost air carriers and creating jobs. He became premier — the island has a British-appointed governor with limited powers — and began aggressively courting sporting and cultural events.
"I brought in marching bands from historically black schools and our people loved them," he says.
He also landed the prestigious 2007 PGA Grand Slam of Golf and announced Monday that the event would return in 2008.
Brown is now in discussion with Howard officials about playing games in Bermuda, a prospect that the school's athletic director finds enticing on several levels.
"The historical aspect is significant," says AD Dwight Datcher, "but this is also a great opportunity for the players. The big schools get to go to Hawaii and Alaska for tournaments, so for mid-major schools a trip to Bermuda would help recruiting."
Boxing promoter Rock Newman, a friend and fellow Howard alum, is optimistic about a deal because Brown has always been very determined, especially in sports.
At a track meet with Morgan State, Newman recalls, Brown anchored the 400-meter relay. A bad baton pass left Brown empty handed, but he kept running and passed the other runners at the finish.
"I wasn't the winner," Brown says now with his trademark booming laugh. "But I was the first one across the finish line."
By Sal Ruibal, USA TODAY
The word Bermuda conjures images of crisp knee-high shorts and croquet balls rolling on impossibly green grass.
If the man who runs the 23-square-mile island nation 600 miles east of North Carolina has his way, however, Bermuda could also become famous for college basketball players in knee-length shorts scrambling for the ball on hardwood floors.
Dr. Ewart Brown, Premier of this self-governing British Overseas Territory, is leaving his emerald isle this week to scout the Big Apple Classic on Saturday at New York City's famed Madison Square Garden. The one-day event pits Virginia Union against Bowie State and Hampton vs. Howard.
Brown is no stranger to the four historically black universities: In the 1960s he earned both a B.S. in chemistry and a medical doctorate at Howard, where he also ran on the school's track team.
His mission to New York goes far beyond rooting for the Bison. Brown, who is also Bermuda's minister of tourism and transport, sees sporting events involving historically black colleges and universities as a way to connect his majority-black population with visiting African-American student-athletes.
"Our people need to see that they can aspire to more, that they can become doctors and educators and leaders," he says. "And the teams and their fans can visit us to learn more about their history and the African Diaspora."
Much of the island's black population can trace their heritage to an 1835 incident involving an American slave ship that blew off-course and landed in Bermuda. Slavery was outlawed there, so the forced exiles were allowed to stay.
Brown, who was active in the student black power movement at Howard, left a lucrative medical practice in Los Angeles in 1983 to return to his native Bermuda with the aim of improving life for the citizens who weren't sharing in the prosperity created by the 13,000 tax-sheltered international corporations that call the island home.
Brown was elected to a seat in the nearly 400-year-old parliament, then became minister of tourism. He used his post to change the island's stodgy tourist industry, attracting low-cost air carriers and creating jobs. He became premier — the island has a British-appointed governor with limited powers — and began aggressively courting sporting and cultural events.
"I brought in marching bands from historically black schools and our people loved them," he says.
He also landed the prestigious 2007 PGA Grand Slam of Golf and announced Monday that the event would return in 2008.
Brown is now in discussion with Howard officials about playing games in Bermuda, a prospect that the school's athletic director finds enticing on several levels.
"The historical aspect is significant," says AD Dwight Datcher, "but this is also a great opportunity for the players. The big schools get to go to Hawaii and Alaska for tournaments, so for mid-major schools a trip to Bermuda would help recruiting."
Boxing promoter Rock Newman, a friend and fellow Howard alum, is optimistic about a deal because Brown has always been very determined, especially in sports.
At a track meet with Morgan State, Newman recalls, Brown anchored the 400-meter relay. A bad baton pass left Brown empty handed, but he kept running and passed the other runners at the finish.
"I wasn't the winner," Brown says now with his trademark booming laugh. "But I was the first one across the finish line."
