Elite Weekend, the March 16-17 event at Devon House, has been described by promoters as a resounding success. Jerry McDonald, one of its spokespersons, told Observer Online that indicators point to a return next year.

McDonald — who co-produced the show with Sephron Mair — is one of the principals behind Bleu & Bougie which took place on the opening day while the next day belonged to Soiree Blanc.

Both are calendar events for Jamaicans in New York City.

“Based on the feedback received thus far from those who heard and saw what transpired from social media coverage, the possibilities are endless. We have to do more to engage more patrons in Jamaica to expand our base on the ‘rock’. We learned a lot from this first effort and feel that once we have fine-tuned the planning and execution, the sky is the limit,” said McDonald.

He noted that many of the patrons came in from New York, but there was also a Jamaican presence from Florida, Atlanta, Texas and Toronto.

On the second day, organisers honoured sprinter Asafa Powell for his contribution to athletics and Jamaican sport. The 41 year-old athlete, who retired from professional sport in late 2022, broke the 10-second barrier over 100 meters a record 97 times in his career.

Powell, who also set the world record for that distance twice, won one Olympic gold medal and two World Championships gold medals as a member of Jamaica’s 4X100 metres relay team.

With Elite Weekend taking place two days before the start of Boys and Girls Athletics Championships, McDonald sees that as a winning combination.

“I can tell you the weekend before Boys and Girls Champs, that weekend is ours, so lock the dates in. We have interest from other partners looking to do something on the Friday and possibly something on Monday. Nothing is set in stone, except to say we will be back in 2025,” he said.

– Howard Campbell