ST JOHN’S, Antigua – Organizers of the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2024 recently held high-level meetings with various stakeholders as the preparations for the global sporting event intensify. Officials from regional organizations – The Caribbean Community Implementation Agency for Crime and Security (CARICOM IMPACS), The Caribbean Public Health Agency (CARPHA), Caribbean Disaster Emergency Management Agency (CDEMA), and the Organization of American States (OAS) were just some of the main agencies in attendance, in addition to the Chief Medical Officers and Commissioners of Police from CARICOM member states hosting the historic cricket event.
The summit was held at the Hilton Trinidad & Conference Centre on 7 and 8 February, with over 60 delegates discussing and contributing to the primary topics of security, safety, medical and public health for the world event, in addition to related areas of accreditation, logistics, venue preparedness, technology, cyber-security, and match-day management.
Based on the outcomes from the summit, the partnerships between medical, health, safety, and security will be crucial elements towards the successful hosting of the tournament which will be played from 1 to 29 June. Fans from around the world will be in attendance for what will be the biggest event ever staged in the region.
K.J Singh, Head of Operations for the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2024 in the West Indies and USA, said he was extremely pleased with the level of participation, information sharing, and commitments made by national, regional, and international agencies, which will be left as a legacy not only for the hosting of cricket but other major events in the region.
“This will be the biggest event the region has ever undertaken, and to ensure its success it will require the collaboration and operational integration of many key regional and international agencies, especially since the tournament is being hosted for the first time jointly between two regions in the southern hemisphere. The key objective of the summit was to bring the main security, safety, medical, and health stakeholders together, with a focus on sharing information, insight, experiences, best practices, and resources,”
Singh said.
“Coming out of the summit, we are all unified on what is required and next steps to be taken to ensure that we meet all the minimum requirements to host this mega event. Commitments have been garnered by the host nations and supporting regional and international agencies to provide essential resources, joint training exercises, and other collaborative preparedness initiatives to host member countries and tournament stakeholders. With these next steps and commitments in place, we are confident that the region will be ready to deliver international-standard safety, care, and service to all tournament contingents, including the thousands of spectators, both visiting and local, positioned to attend the match at this historic world cricket event.”
The ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2024 will be the largest in the tournament’s history with 20 international teams playing 55 matches across nine host locations. It is the first time USA will host matches at a T20 World Cup, with 16 First Round matches split between Nassau County International Cricket Stadium (New York), Grand Prairie Cricket Stadium (Dallas), and Broward County Stadium (Lauderhill).
West Indies, who hosted the event in 2010, will hold matches at Sir Vivian Richards Stadium (Antigua and Barbuda), Kensington Oval (Barbados), Guyana National Stadium (Guyana), Daren Sammy Cricket Ground (Saint Lucia), Arnos Vale (Saint Vincent and The Grenadines) and Brian Lara Cricket Academy (Trinidad and Tobago).
Cricket West Indies is the official host of the event, with an entity T20 World Cup Inc. established to administer local delivery within the USA to support the growth of the sport in the country. (CWI)
