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**Sickko** · July 18, 2009, 11:58 AM

Fiona May is now an accomplished Italian actress- we were talking about her at dinner one night in Italy last week.

But the lists is much longer than this really, to give you an example the two boys that ran the 300m and 400m legs on the US team in the medley heats for the US say their parents are from jamaica.

One day we heard two candian girls singing this dance hall song about 'inna de belly belly', i had to ask some one who did that song as I did not know it...we later saw the girls and spoke to them and ofcourse one of their their parents were Jamaican and the other was from another caribbean island

**Historian** · July 19, 2009, 08:10 AM

Yep, More Names Needed

Originally posted by Sickko View Post

Fiona May is now an accomplished Italian actress- we were talking about her at dinner one night in Italy last week.

But the lists is much longer than this really, to give you an example the two boys that ran the 300m and 400m legs on the US team in the medley heats for the US say their parents are from jamaica.

One day we heard two candian girls singing this dance hall song about 'inna de belly belly', i had to ask some one who did that song as I did not know it...we later saw the girls and spoke to them and ofcourse one of their their parents were Jamaican and the other was from another caribbean island

Very good news about former world champion long jumper Fiona May! The last time I can recall seeing her, if my memory is correct, might have been at the 2000 Olympic Games in Sydney, although I think it might instead have been at a subsequent IAAF World Championships.

And Sickko, I fully agree with you that the list is much longer. It definitely is, and I was hoping that other members of the forum would have made additions to this list by now. Even as I type, the name of a certain former 400-meter runner with Jamaican roots who later represented another country, Brandon Simpson, comes to mind! Also, as I look at my list and see Debbie Ferguson, I recall that Pauline Davis (almost certainly the greatest ever Bahamian female athlete) has deep Jamaican connections, but what these are I don’t know for sure. Maybe TDowl or Karl can help here.

Your anecdote about the young Canadian girls is interesting, and I can imagine that scenes like what you described are repeated countless times elsewhere in North America and other parts of the world. Who, for example, would have expected a top Nigerian runner (Fasuba) to be the son of a Jamaican woman?

**Peter R** · July 19, 2009, 08:17 AM

HEre are two for starters : represented Canada in the 1984 Olympics and won a silver in the 100 relay: Molly Killingbeck whom I met on a flight to Jamaica in 1992, she was my seat mate, the flight was waaaay too short, very nice lady AND Charmaine Crooks. Jamaican born both.

**Peter R** · July 19, 2009, 08:34 AM

TWo more: Men- Atlee Mahorn 100m (4x100); Milt Ottey -High Jumper (I believe he is related to Merlene). Both represented Canada in 1988. Don't know their full bio.

I was living in Canada at the time so I was aware that there were many athletes JA born (not to mention parentage) who represented Canada. The Cdn track team was (is?) also full of athletes with West Indian background.

**Mosiah** · July 19, 2009, 08:34 AM

Marvin Nash represented Canada in the 1976 Montreal Olympics. He was a sprinter. Will always remember the commentator saying, "Keep your eye on Marvin Nash..." This was one of the early 100m heats. He finished out of the frame!

He was born in Jamaica.

**Peter R** · July 19, 2009, 08:54 AM

Two more JA born representing Canada in the 80s-

Tony Sharpe (4 x100)
Angella taylor-Issajenko 100m and 4x100. I knew her (by sight) while I was a student at York university in Toronto as she was also a student (?)or at least trained there in the late 70s and after. She was among the infamous crowd of dopers under Charlie Francis (the then Canadian coach) and Dr Jamie Astaphan ( I think he has since died). I believe she wrote a book about their experience. Someone closer to the Canadian scene could verify.

**Peter R** · July 19, 2009, 08:59 AM

Mo, I remember the name now you mention it...

As my bredrin Paul M says, one of JA's greatest "export" is our (t&f)athletes. I was googling the Canadian Olympic teams of the past and I would guess by the names that quite a few are of Jamaican parentage. The ones I named above are JA born.

**Sickko** · July 19, 2009, 09:23 AM

Milt Ottey is Merlene's cousin and has roots in Hanover

**Historian** · July 19, 2009, 09:31 AM

Thanks, Peter R and Mosiah!

Originally posted by Peter R View Post

Mo, I remember the name now you mention it...

As my bredrin Paul M says, one of JA's greatest "export" is our (t&f)athletes. I was googling the Canadian Olympic teams of the past and I would guess by the names that quite a few are of Jamaican parentage. The ones I named above are JA born.

Excellent! Thank you both, Peter R and Mosiah

!

Hopefully, in time we’ll get even more names. I want to create a personal listing because, as Peter R said in quoting Paul Marin, “One of JA’s greatest ‘export’ is our (t&f) athletes.” Well said, boss

!

By the way, the sprinter Derrick Atkins was born in Jamaica because of, I presume, the strong belief by many of us in Jamaica’s medical practices/history. I say this because his Jamaican parents were not living in Jamaica at the time of his birth. However, his pregnant mother made the decision to have her child in Jamaica, which she did before returning to the Bahamas (where she resided) a year after Derrick’s birth. Interesting tidbit, I believe.

**PeeJay** · July 19, 2009, 05:40 PM

Historian add my cousin who rep for Canada in Boxing

Chris Omar Johnson (born August 8, 1971 in Manchester, Jamaica) is a Jamaican-born boxer, who won a middleweight bronze medal at the 1992 Summer Olympics for Canada. In 1990 he won the gold medal at the 1990 Commonwealth Games.

Chris was raised in Kitchener, Ontario, Canada with his three brothers, Greg, Wayne, and Kevin, and sister, Necoal.

Presently, Chris is the trainer of IBF Junior Featherweight World Champion, Steve "The Canadian Kid" Molitor, in addition to notable boxers such as Andrew Singh Kooner, and Natalie "Too Bad" Brown.
He trained with Lennox Lewis as youths...At his wedding in St. Elizabeth a couple years ago, Lennox was his Best Man and a regular visitor to my Uncles house in Kitchener, Ontario

**TDowl** · July 19, 2009, 09:27 PM

My List: www.talawah.com/jaborn.htm,

www.talawah.com/jaroots.htm

**Historian** · July 20, 2009, 07:29 AM

This is Amazing!

Originally posted by PeeJay View Post

Chris Omar Johnson (born August 8, 1971 in Manchester, Jamaica) is a Jamaican-born boxer, who won a middleweight bronze medal at the 1992 Summer Olympics for Canada. In 1990 he won the gold medal at the 1990 Commonwealth Games.

Chris was raised in Kitchener, Ontario, Canada with his three brothers, Greg, Wayne, and Kevin, and sister, Necoal.

Presently, Chris is the trainer of IBF Junior Featherweight World Champion, Steve "The Canadian Kid" Molitor, in addition to notable boxers such as Andrew Singh Kooner, and Natalie "Too Bad" Brown.
He trained with Lennox Lewis as youths...At his wedding in St. Elizabeth a couple years ago, Lennox was his Best Man and a regular visitor to my Uncles house in Kitchener, Ontario

Thank you very much, PeeJay! I’m sure that very few of us on this forum would have realized this important fact that you’ve presented here. But it simply goes to show just how much of an impact Jamaican athletes have made on international track and field! Certainly amazing; remarkable!

Thanks once again, boss

!

**Historian** · July 20, 2009, 07:34 AM

Excellent!

Originally posted by TDowl View Post

My List: www.talawah.com/jaborn.htm,

www.talawah.com/jaroots.htm

TDowl, the first time I did a listing (I can’t even remember what that list of mine was about), I had forgotten Talawah. This time I didn’t, but I missed your lists (I didn’t scroll all the way down) and so mistakenly thought you did not have such a list!

Looking now at your excellent and certainly very helpful list on Talawah, I can see that it needs a slight bit of updating

. For example, Jamaicans like Germaine Mason and, probably, our infamous quarter-miler Brandon Simpson could be added to ensure accuracy. Also, several Caribbean sprinters like, to cite just two here, Derrick Atkins and Debbie Ferguson who have definite, very deep Jamaican roots could be included as well.

Aside from these names which can be included (the names in the paragraph above are absolutely correct as far as the facts are concerned), your excellent Talawah listing is definitely a HUGE help for me!! That Talawah website is a major resource center for students of Jamaican athletes!!!

**Islandman** · July 20, 2009, 07:37 AM

Doesn't Pauline Davis of the Bahamas have a Jamaican link?

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