In exactly 93 days, The Bahamas will host the third edition of the International Association of Athletics Federations' (IAAF) World Relay Championships at Thomas A. Robinson National Stadium.
The countdown for the 2017 World Relays is on, as the event was launched at a press conference at the stadium yesterday. Present were members of the local organizing committee (LOC) and Minister of Youth, Sports and Culture, Dr. Daniel Johnson. The IAAF World Relays Bahamas 2017, is set for April 22-23, and is expected to feature some of the biggest names in the sport of athletics from around the world.
The 4x100 meters (m), 4x200m, 4x400m and 4x800m relays, in both genders, will be contested, and, for the first time in the event's history, a mixed gender 4x400m race will be held, replacing the distance medley events. Therefore, there will be nine events on the track, as opposed to 10, as was the case in the first two editions of the world relays.
The 2017 IAAF World Relays will also serve as a qualifier for the 2017 IAAF World Championships, set for August 4-13, in London, England.
"We can almost say we are veterans now at hosting the world relays," said IAAF World Relays Bahamas 2017 Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Rosamunde Carey, who also serves as president of the Bahamas Association of Athletic Associations (BAAA). "We will put the same top notch effort into this year's relays that we put into the relays that we hosted in the past. The Bahamas is currently at the forefront of athletics, and we are going to continue to live up to our reputation as a sporting nation. We look forward to connecting with some 700 athletes, showcasing our very own star athletes, and of course, giving our guests a taste of our beautiful island and our unique culture."
This year's world relays will be broadcast live in a number of countries, available all over the world.
Also, the customary junior event that features high school athletes from around The Bahamas, competing in the same relays as the elite athletes, will continue this year. It will be held both days, prior to the program for the world relays.
"I used to think that it was the sun, sand and sea that attracted people to The Bahamas, but when I really thought about it, all of the other Caribbean countries can offer the same thing. What separates us is the people," said IAAF Council Member Pauline Davis-Thompson. "They always rave about the hospitality they come across when they are here. The IAAF Council is eager to return to The Bahamas and see what will come with this year's event."
The Bahamas is also confirmed as the host country for the 2019 World Relays, and while hosting the event four times in a row is an impressive achievement within itself, Minister Johnson said that he and the LOC look to take things a step further, as they put in a request to make The Bahamas the official home of the IAAF World Relays.
"We look at this as more than just bringing an event home. We see this as bringing an entire industry home," he said. "This can be ours for generations to come. The idea of 'sports in paradise' is to benefit the entire country. Doctors, painters, hotel workers, taxi drivers and other professionals stand to benefit from this as well. We are building an industry that we own."
The first world relays in 2014 featured a total of 470 athletes from 41 of the 200-plus member federations of the IAAF. The following year, a total of 514 athletes from 42 countries competed. This year, the event is expected to surpass both totals.

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