CANOC chief warns Caribbean sport risks being left behind

by Michael Bascombe

KINGSTOWN, Oct. 25, 2026 - Caribbean Association of National Olympic Committees President Keith Joseph has called for a regional reassessment of the Olympic system, warning that Caribbean sport could be left behind as international governing bodies change their operating models.

Joseph, speaking on Saturday’s TalkSports programme with Michael Bascombe, questioned whether the region’s national federations and Olympic committees were adequately preparing for changes in international sport.

“Personally, I believe that the Olympic model needs change,” Joseph said. “I think it has exhausted its usefulness.”

He said Caribbean Olympic committees should be developing research-based proposals to present to the International Olympic Committee (IOC), where he believes the region is underrepresented.

“What are our Olympic committees doing in order to bring to the table of the International Olympic Committee, where we are already underrepresented, to change the model that we are using?” Joseph asked.

The CANOC president cited FIFA President Gianni Infantino’s public approach to proposed changes in football as an indication of the broader discussions taking place within international federations.

Joseph said Caribbean administrators must continuously examine the region’s role within that changing environment instead of waiting for reforms to be determined by more influential sporting blocs.

“If we don’t do it now as a Caribbean grouping, we will get left behind in much the same way that our governments have gotten left behind in terms of international development strategies and their application to the benefit of our peoples,” he said.

Joseph’s comments came days after he was re-elected to lead CANOC for the 2026–2030 term at the organisation’s 24th General Assembly in Curaçao.

The St Vincent and the Grenadines administrator heads a seven-member executive committee whose stated priorities include regional cooperation, governance, and expanded opportunities for Caribbean athletes and sporting organisations.