Major sponsors Seprod Limited now in their 10th year of anchoring the INSPORT Primary Schools Athletics Championships, yesterday announced an increase in support for 2015 staging of the event.

The company has promised $20 million this year.

The event, in its 35th year, is scheduled to take place from April 29 to May 2 at the National Stadium.

A total of $12 million in cash will go toward the execution of the championships, with another $8 million being supplied through nutritional support for athletes and administrators throughout the four days.

Roger Thompson, Group Marketing Manager at Seprod, assured his company’s continued commitment to the development of Jamaica’s young talent.

“This year’s support also comes at a time when we at Seprod are celebrating our 75th anniversary, [which is] yet another milestone. We are committed to Jamaica…we are committed to healthy and nutritional living, and we are committed to growing Jamaica’s sporting prowess and our children’s competitive spirit,” said Thompson, while making his address during the launch at Alhambra Inn yesterday.

“Jamaica has no shortage of talent, and healthy competition amongst our children is important for their own physical psychological and social development as we work to build a society of healthy, competitive and strong people,” he added.

Thompson revealed that Seprod will be awarding $100,000 in academic support to both the top performing girl and boy at the championships. He also pointed out that a current contract for live televised broadcast is still being “negotiated”, but is “guaranteed”.

With a number of junior stars, including Michael O’Hara, Raheem Chambers and Natalliah Whyte, passing through the Primary Championship, it has been described as an unequalled breeding ground for track and field stars.

Approximately 93 schools have registered for the meet, two less than last year’s record staging, with over 4000 athletes set to take part in 38 events. New Providence Primary will be seeking to retain their title, while many-time champions Naggo Head Primary will be optimistic of retaking the crown.

Ian Andrews, executive director of INSPORT, is delighted at Seprod’s continued support.

“It is really heart-warming to see the sponsors coming on board in such a big way, and that will go a far way in executing the championship. This championship has unearthed so many top athletes, so this speaks to the work that INSPORT is doing in unearthing the talent, and come next week we will see just that,” he told reporters.

Meanwhile, Don Anderson, chairman of INSPORT, urged the participants to hone their talent, so that they too can follow in the steps of those who went before them.

The meet is scheduled to run from 8:30 am to 6:00 pm each day. The grandstand-only admission fee will be $200 for children and $400 for adults on the opening two days. For the final two days of the meet, it will still be $200 for children, but $500 for adults.