By Dean “The Sportsman” Greenaway
The last BVI Basketball Federation District League was held in 2022
With a dysfunctional BVI Basketball Federation headed by Dereck Varlack since 2022, and a series of stalled discussions, a group has emerged and stepped forward to form a BVI Amateur Basketball Association at 3 p.m. on Sunday.
The “call to action” came out of a successful zoom meeting last weekend, with 20 stakeholders from Tortola and Virgin Gorda, and a body has been nominated for the various posts.
The body’s focus will be on running basketball leagues in the territory in the absence of a functional BVI Basketball Federation. Despite the Federation being dysfunctional, Varlack who held the post of president, was allowed to cast the vote on behalf of the body in the BVI Olympic Committee elections in December.
Over the years, there has been a call for a body to run the league while the federation focused on its international work. There was an unsuccessful attempt to form the BVI Basketball Federation, the last time by Feb 23, 2024.
“The meeting couldn’t have gone any better. We had members of the community in the meeting. We had representatives from the Virgin Gorda Basketball Association and the BVI Olympic Committee,” Joash Victor told Island Sun Sports. “We discussed all the current standing of the BVI basketball community and as a result, everyone is on the same page in regards to what’s happening within the community. It’s been a year since we had that last stakeholders’ meeting. This meeting was a call to action this time and we’ll establish the BVI Basketball Association, which we are successfully doing.”
He said the main objective is to have the continuation of organized basketball in the territory.
“In the presence of a dysfunctional federation, the association could assume the role of the federation, providing that CBC (Caribbean Basketball Confederation) acknowledges the presence of the dysfunctionality and we could become the main governing body of the sport as a result of that,” Victor explained, noting that it is within FIBA Bylaws. “It has happened before and in the case of the BVI, it’s definitely possible, but of course, that’s not our aim however. We hope that the BVI Basketball Federation gets its act together, but unfortunately, as things are looking now that is not likely to happen. We have to ensure that in a case like that, if FIBA does not recognize us as part of the federation, we’ll be able to assume that role in a worst-case scenario.”
Victor has been nominated a President; Jason Edwin, Vice President; Samantha Howard, Secretary; Rashida Hodge, (Virgin Gorda) Assistant Secretary; Kimana Wattley, Treasurer; Player Representatives, Cameron Young, Kennedy Bass and Trevor “West” Stevens (Virgin Gorda). Victor said everyone has accepted their nomination.
“It’s an exciting time for basketball in the BVI, I would say,” Victor said.
Edwin was the Vice President of the BVI Basketball Federation and Victor said he seconded his nomination for the Vice President’s post, because he sees the value of having him. “The experience that he has in running leagues, is basically what he did with the last league that we had, it was only him running the league,” he said. “I’m so happy to have him on board, because I know he has good intentions for basketball in the BVI.”
