00:00So, 52 gymnasts were scheduled to go to the Crifter Championships, that would be on November 29th to the 30th.
00:08They would have liked to have funding, but parents said that they have to foot the entire bill.
00:14I would imagine that some sort of request would have made to the ministry, but apparently it was denied for whatever reason.
00:22I need an explanation from the ministry as to what's happened.
00:25The Trinidad and Tobago Gymnastics Federation submitted an application late.
00:32They fall under Sport ET and national governing bodies are asked to do two things.
00:39By June of the previous fiscal year, which would have been June 2024, they should have submitted their plan for the next fiscal year beginning October 1st, 2024 to September 30th, 2025.
00:52Gymnastics did not submit. As we closed the last fiscal year, gymnastics did not submit an application for funding to go to this Crifter Gymnastics Tournament.
01:05It was not until the last week of October that gymnastics submitted.
01:10Now, coming at the end of the financial year, when we close our financials and so on,
01:15gymnastics knows very well that when you are applying for funding to go abroad, you have to apply three months in advance.
01:22We're even very lenient that if you come two months before, we would consider to try to help, but it's not possible.
01:30For you to apply at the end of October and get funding in time to travel with minors and so on, to go through the relevant processing to get the money at the end of November,
01:39I think that it is irresponsible of Gymnastics Federation. Sport ET calls these national governing bodies to meet monthly.
01:49Gymnastics has not shown up to the meetings of Sport ET for months, and in trying to contact Gymnastics,
01:56my information from Sport ET is that they have not been responded, but yet sent a letter at the end of October expecting money to magically become available for them to travel at the end of November.
02:11That is very irresponsible.
02:13Any possibility of a retroactive payment at all?
02:17It doesn't work like that, because when you make those commitments, knowing fully well that the national governing body has applied later,
02:26then they don't make the necessary travel arrangements or they are unable to get the money in time, then they blame the government,
02:32they blame the Ministry of Sport, they blame Sport ET when they know fully well that they didn't apply on time.
02:38Can clubs apply to a sport company, like a gymnastics club?
02:44A gymnastics club, not necessarily a national governing body, like a club?
02:48Yes.
02:49Yes, they can apply to the Ministry of Sport. We help lots of clubs separately.
02:53For instance, when volleyball was going through some trouble, volleyball clubs separately applied to the Ministry of Sport and Community Development,
03:03and we helped the volleyball clubs individually until Volleyball Federation had recently started to get itself back together,
03:09so we are now working hand in hand with the national governing body.
03:13That too has to be a three-month period?
03:16Yes, it's three months. Once you are travelling abroad, we try to maintain the three months.
03:22If you come with all your documents within two and we are able to facilitate, of course we will.
03:29But after two months, it becomes very difficult.
03:32In a case where an NGB submitted on time and for some reason Sport ET was not able to provide the funding in time, we still honour it.
03:41As long as you come back and you can show your receipts and so on, we still honour it.
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