The sport of weightlifting as expected has been given a significant boost in Tobago with the official handing over of weightlifting equipment (free-weights) to the Sports Department of the Tobago House of Assembly by the International Weightlifting Federation, located in Budapest, Hungary.

It was also announced that Tobago would house the headquarters for the revived Trinidad and Tobago Weightlifting Association, which has been dormant for sometime.

Making the presentation and demonstrating the use of the equipment was the Federation's representative and now resident of Tobago, Geoff Laws. Laws was a gold medallist in the Commonwealth Games in the sport of weightlifting.

Among the invited guests who witnessed the presentation were Tracy Davidson, Assistant Secretary for Youth Affairs and Sports, Paul Newallo, representative from the Ministry of Sport and Larry Romany, President of the Trinidad and Tobago Olympic Committee (TTOC).

Theophilus Trim, Director of Sports, underscored the benefits to be derived by Tobagonians with the establishment of two additional weightlifting centres at Roxborough Sports Complex and at a venue yet to be identified on the North side of the island. He explained that schools would be given priority use of these centres to aid in their physical education programmes. However, senior sports men and women of the island will also able to use these facilities for their off season preparation.

Coach of the Zenith Athletic Club and Schools Supervisor 1, Gerard Franklin was very enthusiastic as he spoke of the benefits to be derived by clubs. The promotion of healthy lifestyles and the building of basic fundamentals of strength, power and prevention of muscular injuries were some of the benefits highlighted from the use of weights by Franklyn. Assistant Secretary Davidson saw the location of the headquarters in Tobago and the development of weightlifting as an opportunity to further develop the Sports Tourism thrust.

She pledged the Assembly's support in the drive in the development of the centres, especially the one in Northside because of the absence of sporting facilities in that area.

She also thanked the two organisations, the TTOC and the IWF for focusing on Tobago in this new thrust towards producing another Olympic medallist in the sport.