Sports Minister El James has honoured 12 of the Island's most promising athletes who set new national records at the recent Carifta Games in the Caribbean.

The Minister hailed the young athletes for their 'outstanding achievement' as he presented them with certificates to commemorate their records.

It is the first time that the government has issued these certificates, and is part of a programme to compile a comprehendatabase of national record holders.

"We are making history today," said the Minister.

"We have 12 of our young athletes to be the first recipients of national certificates that indicate they hold national records in their respective sport.

"Their accomplishments at the 2008 Carifta Games are nothing short of outstanding, and I salute them for it."

Swimmer Ashley Yearwood led the way in setting new national records in the 400 and –200 freestyle, 200 and 100 metre butterfly as well as a new mark in the 50 metre backstroke.

Others setting new national records in this year's games were track and field athletes Ashley Berry, Aaron Evans, Alexis Bean, Deanne Lightbourne and swimmers Julian Fletcher, Eleanor Gardner, Rebecca Sharpe, Rebecca Heyliger, Nicole Yearwood, Nick Thomson and Morgan Hopkins.

The new database will hold a list of the names of all of the Island's national record holders including those who have just returned from the Caribbean.

In the past it has been up to individual governing bodies to keep records, but the Minister said that the time had come for Bermuda to have it's own national archive of sporting achievement.

"We have to blow our own horn and celebrate our achievements," said the Minister.

"That is exactly what we intend to make happen.

"We realised that what Bermuda urgently needed was a National Sports Records Database. This kind of information is really about officially documenting our history in the sporting arena ¿ both on Island and off," James said.

"While some of our individual sporting organisations have maintained their own records, there has never been a central database where one could go to find accurate, up to date information on all of our sporting heroes and personalities.

"The Department of Youth, Sports and Recreation was assigned the arduous task of pulling this information together for the public on the web.

"Today I am very pleased to announce that our National Sports Records database is in the process of compiled and when completed, it will include not only information on our athletes, but it will also comprise a pictoral and archival library of sport and sporting personalities in Bermuda."