TWENTY three young track and field athletes left Bermuda yesterday with national coach Gerry Swan to compete at the 2008 Carifta Games in St. Kitts.

The Opening Ceremony of the Games, which will feature the cream of the Caribbean, will be held today at the new Bird Rock Athletic Stadium and competition will continue until the Closing Ceremony on Sunday.

Before leaving Bermuda, coach Swan said that this team will "probably be the youngest in a while to represent Bermuda".

And nine of the 23 athletes will be experiencing their first Carifta Games which are divided into two age categories ¿ Under 17 and Under 20.

While these Games will be the highlight for many of the athletes in their young sporting lives, two who will fly the flag in St. Kitts have been on the world stage before.

Both Aaron Evans and Harold Houston competed in the Czech Republic last summer at the IAAF World Youth Championships.

Evans has also just been offered a full athletic scholarship by the University of Memphis.

Mr. Swan said that Houston along with Evans and middle distance runner Matthew Spring, are on target to represent Bermuda at the 2010 Commonwealth Games in India and the 2012 Olympic Games in London.

The coach was said he was pleased with the Carifta qualifying performances from the island's athletes.

"Nineteen athletes pushed themselves to new personal best performances ¿ and surpassed qualifying standards along the way ¿ to earn places on the BTFA's team for the Games," he said.

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