The University of Trinidad and Tobago (UTT) will be opening the inaugural Caribbean Congress and Exposition of the International Council for Health, Physical Education, Recreation, Sport and Dance (ICHPER.SD) today, from 6 pm, at the Cascadia Hotel in St Ann’s.

 

Sports Minister Gary Hunt will be among the dignitaries addressing the opening today, as well as ICHPER.SD preisident Dr Dong Ja Yang and ex-West Indies cricket great Gordon Greenidge. Other local high-profile attendees at today’s ceremony include representatives of the national sporting facility, High Commissioners of Australia, the United Kingdom and India, as well as representatives of Government Ministries (Sport, Education, Health, Community Development and Social Development). The Congress and Exposition will run until Sunday, with presentations being made by University personnel from the United States, Japan, Australia, as well as the UTT.

 

According to a media release, the ICHPER.SD was conceptualised in 1950 by the Board of Directors of the American Association for Health, Physical Education and Recreation (AAHPER).

 

On June 2008, the Caribbean was established as the Council’s eighth regional organisation for mission and program implementation.The ICHPER.SD also has links with a number of global bodies, including the International Olympic Committee (IOC) and the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO).