NEW YORK, USA — Jamaican Olympian Grace Jackson, a silver medallist at the Seoul Olympics, has been confirmed as a panellist at the inaugural Caribbean Lifestyle TV (CLM TV) Sports Symposium to be held at the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture in Harlem, New York on May 27.

Jackson, a three-time Olympian who was a finalist in the 100 and 200m at the 1984 and 1988 Olympics, won a bronze medal at the 1987 IAAF World Indoor Championship and a silver at the 1989 IAAF World Indoor Championship.

Trained in accounting and computer science at the post-graduate level, Jackson was awarded the Order of Distinction (OD) by the Jamaican Government for her contribution to sports.

Since retiring from competitive sports, she has served as first vice-president of the Jamaica Amateur Athletic Association (JAAA) and is currently the Sports Development Director at the University of the West Indies, Mona.

Jackson joins previously confirmed panellists Neville ‘Teddy’ McCook, executive of the Jamaica Olympic Association (JOA); Olympian Raymond Stewart; Devon Harris, a member of Jamaica’s original bobsled team and Bruce James, TV sports analyst and president of MVP Track Club, home of Olympic champions Shelly Ann Fraser, Brigitte Foster-Hylton and former world record-holder Asafa Powell.

The symposium is the first event of this kind in the Diaspora and sports fans are excited about the opportunity to hear from some of the leading sports icons and administrations and have the opportunity to discuss issues relating to the theme of the event — The Legacy of the Beijing Olympics and the World Championships, brand Jamaica and sports tourism.

The symposium will be taped and edited for re-broadcast to TV viewers in the tri-state area in June 2010. Segments of the symposium will also air live online at www.caribbeanlifestyletv.com.

The event has attracted the interest of a number of corporate sponsors in the Caribbean and the USA, including LIME, formerly Cable & Wireless, Jamaica; The Door Restaurant; XOOM.com; Grace Foods; Vernon & Associates and the Schomburg Center.

“LIME has been an integral supporter of sporting activities in Jamaica and the wider Caribbean for decades,” said LIME’s head of Diaspora Colin Benjamin.

“This is consistent with our pledge to give back to the communities within which we operate. We are delighted to be associated with this CLM TV Sports Symposium.”