Vincy is first woman secretary of hemispheric basketball association

MIAMI — Long-serving Bequia Basketball Association President, and former Caribbean Basketball Secretary, Sabrina Mitchell has been elected secretary of the Central American and Caribbean Basketball Confederation (CONCENCABA), becoming the first Vincentian and also the first woman elected to the post.

Mitchell was elected by acclamation, being the sole nomination for secretary, at the annual assembly and elections of the organisation, held here on Tuesday.

She will also serve as a board member of the FIBA Americas Zone Board and continue her current role as member of the Finance Commission of the International Basketball Federation (FIBA). 

Guyanese Patrick Haynes, who was the former secretary was elected CONCENCABA president, defeating former Caribbean Basketball President, Barbadian Glyne Clarke.

The SVG Basketball Federation was represented by President Rohan Providence, who attended the FIBA Plus Seminar and both CBC and CONCENCABA Elective Assemblies here.

Mitchell founded in 1999 the Bequia Basketball Association, which has a stellar record of annual tournaments, with the exception of a two-year hiatus because of COVID-19.

She also served as secretary general of the Caribbean Basketball Confederation for 19 years beginning in 2004, and is currently a Sports Ambassador for SVG.

She is well known for her volunteer service to her country, serving as director of the Bequia Musical Festival, chair of the Bequia Tourism Board and a successful business woman in her own right, owning and managing several companies on the island of Bequia.

Speaking on Mitchell’s election, Providence said: “Ms Mitchell’s ascension to the position of CONCENCABA General Secretary is testimony to her consistency, commitment and profound love and ongoing contribution to the development of the game throughout the FIBA family.”

He said her new role also empowers her to make an even greater impact on the development of the game.

“On behalf of my executive and the SVG Basketball Federation, we wish Ms Mitchell every success in her role and extend the same to Mr. Patrick Haynes, president of CONCENCABA. Working together, we have no doubt that basketball will see profound development and growth here at home and across the sub zone,” Providence siad.

Providence attended the FIBA Plus Workshop held Feb. 10 to 12, where all national federations were given administrative tools and knowledge sharing to enable the growth of basketball in their respective countries.

The Caribbean Basketball Confederation (CBC) elections took place on Monday, and St. Lucia’s Leslie Collymore was elected interim president, with Velica Augustin, another St. Lucian, elected to Mitchell’s former post of CBC Secretary.

CONCENCABA is the regional authority of basketball in the geographic region of Central America and the Caribbean and is responsible for promoting and governing basketball and organising completions within this sub zone.

The overriding authority is FIBA and its regional office, FIBA Americas.

There are 31 national member federations assigned to CONCENCABA: Antigua and Barbuda, Aruba, The Bahamas, Barbados, Bermuda, Belize, British Virgin Islands, Cayman Islands, Costa Rica, Cuba, Dominica, Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Grenada, Guatemala, Guyana, Haiti, Honduras, Jamaica, Mexico, Montserrat, Nicaragua, Panama, Puerto Rico, St. Kits and Nevis, St. Lucia, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Suriname, Trinidad and Tobago, Turks and Caicos and the Virgin Islands.