CAMPBELL, RICKETTS, SUBBA, HINES AND EBANKS, AMONG THE POWER PARRA ATHLETES EMPOWERED BY EDUCATION

The Jamaica Paralympic Association director, Travis Ebanks has given a directive to his academic contemporaries and fellow athletes that they should take charge of current affairs in order to control the future. Jason Ricketts, Chadwick Campbell, Shauna-Kay Hines and Theodor Subba are among the colleagues that the chairman of the athletes commission gave the mandate to.

The team strongly believes that athletic achievers can also shine in education. They have the conviction that they have to pursue and achieve great education standards as well as outstanding performances in sports. Education has been their strongest pillar to hold their sporting professions. Their interests in sport will never been in the way of the pursuit for education. Rather the ideals and morals obtained in sports have stirred their aspirations in education and helped them realize who they are and the vision of their future lives.

They have had the honor of representing Jamaica in the International and regional games as well as tournaments. They have all been successful to bring home enough medals over the years. Jason Ricketts participated in the T12 shotput match in 2019 that was held by the Lima Para Pan-American Games. He is also a member of the award-winning blind cricket team of Jamaica.  He possesses a degree in Media and Communication and a masters in Communication for social and Behavioral Change obtained from the UWI. He is currently in pursuit of a PHD in sports. He is expected to conduct research and submit a thesis on sports as a way for rehabilitation and transformation in the day to day lives of people living with disabilities.

Chadwick Campbell won and took the silver medal in the T13 100m, 2019 Para Pan-American match. He has widely represented Jamaica in championships and regional matches. He is also pursuing a degree in science and marketing at Mona University. He is a recipient of the Newport Fersan Jamaica scholarship.

Theador Subba won the bronze medal in the Pan American 2018 sports. He took home the medal for having participated in the over 100kg Judo class. He would have taken the gold medal if only he had enough experience. He was the topic of town when he qualified for the 2020 Paralympic Matches held in Tokyo. He became the first Jamaican to represent the country in Judo. He is currently pursuing a Bachelor in Public Policy and Management at UWI.

In 2019, Travis Ebanks won the gold medal in the men’s double match that took place in Badminton, special Olympics World Games. He is also the director of the JPA board. He will graduate this year as a lawyer at the Norman Manley Law School. He will then practice litigation counsel later this year in a Jamaican Bar.

Shauana-Kay Hines shines in Taekwondo in any of the Paralympic Games. She was the first to represent Jamaica in Taekwondo Games at the Paralympics. She is equally impressive in academics as she is in sports. She is currently studying at the University of the West Indies, pursuing a degree in Sport leadership and Management. 

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