The July/August vacation in Tobago came to a close with a vibrant 5K Glow Run hosted by the THA Division of Youth Empowerment and Sport.
The event formed part of the Youth in Motion initiative, a month-long programme that encouraged young people to stay active through a series of hikes, runs and other fitness activities.
On Saturday, hundreds of young people aged 35 and under participated in the 5K Glow Run.
It began with an energetic warm-up, accompanied by a performance from local soca artist Juby on the Scarborough Esplanade. Then, adorned with glow sticks, the participants were off.
Completing the race first was Michaiah Alleyne, who used the opportunity as part of his preparation to become a national athlete.
“The race today was very easy for me because I pushed and worked hard and came first. The challenging part was my breathing, but I had proper breathing, and I fight and work it out.”
Second-place winner Jafari Spence was pleased with his performance despite struggling at the beginning of the race.
“These very hard working young men, first and third place, they make me work for it a lot because the gap was pretty big, I can’t lie and I had to work.”
Although Ayele James placed third, he was more excited about beating his personal best time for 5Ks.
“My PB was 20 minutes. I did a church run on Friday and made 18 minutes, and on Independence, I made 16 minutes and 18 seconds. And today I made 16:32. But the Independence run wasn’t a full 5K, so this is my full PB.”
Also participating in the 5K Glow Run was THA Secretary of Youth Empowerment and Sport, Keigon Denoon.
“It was a very, very cool walk, especially being into the afternoon period, when there is no sun. It was good to see so many young persons outside, from the smallest person to the oldest person, it was really an amazing part of exercising, just get the heart pumping, feeling the blood running through your veins.”
Mr Denoon said the 5K Glow Run was one component of a month-long fitness challenge that engaged young people in a series of physical activities.
“In total it was 30K overall, celebrating 30 years of the Youth Department. So before we had a walk through Jesus Hill, a hike, we also had a team marathon challenge and today we have the 5K through the city of Scarborough.”
Secretary Denoon stated that the Division will be undertaking more events aimed at building a healthier Tobago.