Sports Minister Kenson Casimir says the twenty-two-year-old structure must undergo these repairs to make it on par with the other hosting venues. He also highlighted the increased possibility of Saint Lucia as a sports tourism destination in the coming years.

“A lot of things at [the stadium] were installed in 2001, which would mean that was 22 years ago. Technology has pretty much gone ahead. We’ve seen a lot of the recent [renovations of the] stadium being equipped with a different form of drainage. We have already earmarked Daren Sammy Cricket Grounds for an upgrade, and so we have received the costing, and the work is expected to start in November ahead of the cricket tournament,” Casimir explained. Prior to Saint Lucia winning the bid to host some matches, the government had already announced that the stadium would be renovated.

The Sports Minister added that the country’s sports tourism potential is increasing. “Saint Lucia has recently started having amazing successes in terms of achievement on the global scene as it pertains to our sports tourism product in terms of Julien Alfred, and of course, Naomi London, and some of the other individuals being global stars,” he said. Julien Alfred has cemented herself as being one of the fastest women in the world, breaking numerous world records both in the United States and in Hungary. Naomi London has also made a name for herself as being an emerging track star. According to her coach, she is expected to attend Austin Texas University in 2024.

Casimir says the matches will increase Saint Lucia’s visibility globally. “There are tremendous benefits to Saint Lucia for hosting this event. We are talking about 2 billion people and 2 billion pairs of eyes being on sweet Saint Lucia. We are expecting tons of visibility for Saint Lucia,” he explained.  

On prior occasions, Casimir appealed to citizens and businesses to support the sportsmen and sportswomen on-island by providing them with gear and equipment.