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| Photograph by: Ian Walton/Getty Images Sport |
Cleopatra Borel-Brown
is one of Mayaro’s precious gifts who have proudly represented T&T in the
field of shot put. Coming from the remote area of Plaisance, Mayaro, she faced
some difficulties in chasing her dreams, but this never stopped her. When
Cleopatra was growing up in Mayaro, it was a rural district without any
state-of-the-art facilities for sport. However, her father, Raymond,
always had an interest in sports and had trained as an athlete in high school.
Borel’s father taught her and her siblings everything he knew about track
and field events, including the skill of throwing.
Deciding early on
that shot putting suited her capabilities and determined to display the
strength she knew she possessed, Cleopatra actively engaged in the sport,
practised assiduously and built up her stamina and skills. In 1998, at the age
of nineteen, she moved to the U.S.A. and entered Coppin State University in
Maryland. Here she hoped to advance in her track and field goals and for a time
the atmosphere at the college worked for her. However, when her coach retired,
Cleopatra transferred to the University of Maryland. There she was advised to pursue
three years of athletics before advancing to do what she desired.
Borel’s fortitude and indomitable spirit
was such that she also completed a Bachelor’s Degree in health psychology at
Coppin State University, while never losing sight of her goals with respect to
the shot put.
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| Photograph by: Ian Walton/Getty Images Sport |
Cleopatra can
easily qualify as being one of the most enduring and widely competitive women
field athletes of Trinidad and Tobago (T&). She specialized in the shot put
while also competing in the hammer throw on occasion. In 2012, she counted a
third consecutive appearance at the Olympic Games while also having logged two
or more appearances at Games such as the Commonwealth, CAC, Pan Am and World
Championships.
Borel has gained
the respect of fellow competitors for her sheer grit, fortitude, determination and competitiveness. Her sterling efforts and accomplishments have earned her
choices as Trinidad and Tobago’s Sports Woman of the Year on more than one
occasion. Borel has worked as an Assistant Coach at Virginia Tech, an
experience the young people of Trinidad and Tobago whom she inspires benefit
from as she passes on her knowledge and vast practical experience. Evidence of
her world class star ranking is apparent; she placed second to three-time world
and two-time Olympic champion, Valerie Adams, of New Zealand on two occasions
in March, 2013.
Her personal best throw is 19.42 metres, achieved in
August 2010 at the London Grand Prix in London. She
has a personal best of 19.48 metres on the indoor track, achieved in February
2004 in Blacksburg. Borel is currently ranked 14th
on the world’s 2007 outdoor shot put list. Here is a full list of her achievements. Miss Borel is another proud product birthed out of this rich Mayaro soil.
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| Photograph by: Ian Walton/Getty Images Sport |
Nice!!
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