Several parents are telling the Barbados Chess Federation (BCF) they will no longer be the sacrificial pawns for the CARIFTA Championships.
Some of the parents whose children represented the country at the tournament in Curaçao in April are incensed that they had to pay just under $4 000 for each of their children to cover airfare, accommodation, meals, uniform and registration. That bill was double as many parents accompanied their children who were relatively young.
However, the question has been asked: Why should a child make a national team and then have to buy a shirt emblazoned “Barbados”? In addition, parents have been asking why the players have to pay a registration fee of $180 and what exactly has the BCF been contributing towards CARIFTA. (KB)
