Antigua and Barbuda is a country in the West Indies in the Americas, lying between the Caribbean Sea and the Atlantic Ocean. It consists of two major islands, Antigua and Barbuda, and a number of smaller islands. The permanent population numbers about 81,800 and the capital and largest port and city is St. John's on Antigua. Lying near each other, Antigua and Barbuda are in the middle of the Leeward Islands, part of the Lesser Antilles, roughly at 17°N of the equator.
The history of Antigua and Barbuda can be separated into three distinct eras. In the first, the islands were inhabited by three successive Amerindian societies. The islands were neglected by the first wave of European colonisation, but were settled by England in 1632. Under British control, the islands witnessed an influx of both Britons and African slaves. In 1981, the islands were granted independence as the modern state of Antigua and Barbuda.
Sir Lester Bryant Bird, KNH was the second Prime Minister of Antigua and Barbuda from 1994 to 2004 and a well-known athlete. He was chairman of the Antigua Labour Party (ALP) from 1971 to 1983, then became Prime Minister when his father, Sir Vere Bird, the previous Prime Minister, resigned.
Sir Vere Cornwall Bird Sr., KNH was the first Prime Minister of Antigua and Barbuda. His son, Lester Bryant Bird, succeeded him as Prime Minister. In 1994 he was declared a national hero.
At the 1994 Commonwealth Games, the athletics event were held in Victoria, BC, Canada, at the Centennial Stadium on the grounds of the University of Victoria. A total of 44 events were contested, of which 22 by male 19 by female athletes. Furthermore, 2 men's disability events were held within the programme.
At the 1978 Commonwealth Games, the athletics events were held at the Commonwealth Stadium in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. A total of 38 events were contested, 23 for men and 15 for women.
Vere Bird Jr. was an Antiguan lawyer and politician who served as chairman of the Antigua Labour Party (ALP) and a government minister. He is the son of Vere Bird, the former Prime Minister of Antigua and Barbuda, and brother of Lester Bird, who later held the same position.
Neville Myton is a Jamaican former middle distance runner who competed in the 1964 Summer Olympics and in the 1968 Summer Olympics. He was a double gold medallist at the 1966 Central American and Caribbean Games, taking the individual 800 metres title and also sharing in the team gold medals with the Jamaican 4×400 metres relay team. He won a bronze medal in the 4×400 metre relay at the 1967 Pan American Games.
Wellesley K. Clayton is a Jamaican former long jumper who competed in the 1964 Summer Olympics and in the 1968 Summer Olympics.
Rupert Hoilette is a Jamaican former sprinter who competed in the 1964 Summer Olympics.
Paul Foreman is a Jamaican former long jumper who competed in the 1960 Summer Olympics. He was the gold medallist in that event at the 1958 British Empire and Commonwealth Games.
Ivor Grenville Theophulus Bird is an Antiguan businessman and the son of Vere Bird, former Prime Minister of Antigua and Barbuda.
At the 1995 Summer Universiade, the athletics events were held at the Hakatanomori Athletic Stadium in Fukuoka, Japan from 29 August to 3 September. A total of 43 events were contested, of which 23 by male and 20 by female athletes.
The 1958 British West Indies Championships was the second edition of the track and field competition between British colony nations in the Caribbean. A total of eighteen events were contested, all of them by men – women's events were not added until the following year.
The 1959 British West Indies Championships was the third edition of the track and field competition between British colony nations in the Caribbean. It was held in Georgetown in British Guiana. A total of 27 events were contested, twenty-one by men and six by women. This was the first time that women had been able to compete at the event. Three new men's events were added to the programme: 3000 metres steeplechase, half marathon, and the 3000 metres walk. The latter two were the first road running and racewalking events to be included.
The 1960 British West Indies Championships was the fourth edition of the track and field competition between British colony nations in the Caribbean. It was held in Kingston, Jamaica. A total of 31 events were contested, twenty-two by men and nine by women. The women's programme was extended with three throwing events. A new men's event was also included: the athletics pentathlon was the first and only time that a combined track and field event was contested at the completion.
The 1964 British West Indies Championships was the fifth edition of the track and field competition between British colony nations in the Caribbean. This marked the relaunching of the competition after a three-year break, during which the West Indies Federation had been dissolved. It was held in Kingston, Jamaica. A total of 25 events were contested, fifteen by men and ten by women. The 400 metres was added to the women's programme. The number of men's events was reduced, with the 10,000 metres, half marathon, pole vault and relay races all being dropped.
The 1965 British West Indies Championships was the sixth and final edition of the track and field competition between British colony nations in the Caribbean. It was held in Bridgetown, Barbados. The dissolution of the West Indies Federation, and the broader sports co-operation it had engendered, left the competition without the support to continue. A total of 28 events were contested, eighteen by men and ten by women. The men's half marathon, pole vault and relay races were all revived for this final edition, although the 3000 metres steeplechase was dropped. Jamaica was the most successful nation, taking seventeen of the titles on offer – it was Jamaica's fourth win at the competition and the only time a host nation did not top the medal table.
Gordon Smallacombe was a Canadian track and field athlete who competed in jumping events. A Torontonian based out of the West End YMCA, he was the gold medallist in the triple jump at the 1930 British Empire Games, becoming the inaugural champion in the event with a jump of 14.76 m. It was in fact the very first gold medal won in the history of the British Empire Games. He remains the only Canadian man to win that title. At the games, he also competed in the high jump and in the long jump, taking fifth place with a jump of 6.61 m.
