Florrie, 85, nominated for IOC's 'Women of the Year'
Dublin Core
Title
Florrie, 85, nominated for IOC's 'Women of the Year'
Subject
Sports
Tennis
Field hockey for women
Women
Description
Article about FLORIS JESSICA KELSHALL. Trinidad and Tobago Olympic Committee’s nominee for the International Olympic Committee’s “Women and Sport”
Creator
Angela Pidduck
Publisher
Daily News Limited
Date
2001-12-23
Format
JPEG
600dpi
Language
English
Type
Text
Image
Still image
Coverage
Trinidad and Tobago
Text Item Type Metadata
Text
By ANGELA PIDDUCK FLORIS JESSICA KELSHALL is the Trinidad and Tobago Olympic Committee’s nominee for the International Olympic Committee’s “Women and Sport” Trophy -2002.
“Women and Sport” trophies are awarded annually by the IOC to recognise outstanding achievements in developing and encouraging the participation of women and girls in sport. For the year 2002, five trophies will be awarded to former athletes, coaches, administrators, journalists and organisations on the five continents, and one trophy at world level.
National Olympic Committees and International Olympic Sports Federations were invited to submit nominations by December 15 to the Women & Sport Working Group of the IOC in Lausanne, Switzerland, be it a woman, man or an organisation believed to be deserving of this award for long-lasting and important work done in promoting women’s participation in sport in their country. The awardees will be known by the end of December.
In 2000, the TTOC nominated Lystra Lewis, the grand dame of netball who has within recent times been actively involved in the organisation of Inter-national Competitions for other sport, such as football and hockey, held in Trinidad and Tobago. Lewis subsequently received a certificate acknowledging her nomination, at last December’s TTOC annual awards ceremony.
Kelshall’s contributions to the administration/development of women’s hockey in the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago have been recognised at the highest level in this country. On August 31, 1983, Florrie, an optometrist by profession, was presented with the Humming Bird Medal Silver for Sport (Hockey Player/Administrator) by the President of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago.
And on June 10, 1985, she was inducted in the West Indian Tobacco Sports Hall of Fame for the administration of hockey (1944-1963). Florrie’s dedication to hockey has also resulted in her being made the first Honorary Life Member of the Trinidad Tobago Women’s Hockey Association in 1963; the first female Honorary Life Member of the Trinidad & Tobago (Men’ s) Hockey Federation; and an Honorary Life Member of Ventures Hockey Club of which she has been a member for 62 years from 1940 to the present time, was president for 17 years from 1965 to 1982, and in addition served Ventures as secretary, treasurer and Vice President.
Florrie, who will be 86 years old on January 3, 2002, is still a keen Bridge player, a game she started playing in 1973, and represented Trinidad and Tobago on the Ladies Team in 1979, 1980 and 1981 at the Central American and Caribbean Games.
In 1984 at age 68 Florrie took part in a Veterans Swim Race. And as late as 1997, at age 81 1/2, Florrie won the 2nd prize in the Women on the Move 5K Classic in the 70 and over age group.
And although it was in Field Hockey that Florrie devoted many years to development of the sport through her administrative ability, she has represented Trinidad and Tobago on one occasion in Badminton which she started at school in Chester, England, in the late 1930s, and continued to play from 1940 when she returned to the Caribbean with great success in local competitions. She was a member of the Committee of Management of the St Ann’s Badminton Club and served as Vice President in 1955. At that time there was no national body.
A tennis player also from 1940, Florrie won many tournaments but never represented the country as she was forced to make a choice at that level between representative hockey and tennis.
She served on the St James Tennis Club’s Management Committee for many years. But it was to hockey that Florrie Kelshall gave her all. A game she started while at school in Chester and played for the second eleven at Manchester University, where she also threw the javelin and discus for Victoria Hall. Her career as a hockey administrator started in 1944 as Secretary of the Northern Ladies Hockey League, the body then responsible for running hockey in this country. She continued in the administration of the sport and after ten years as Secretary of Treasurer and Vice President of the Association, became the first female President from 1955 to l 962, during which time she was also treasurer of the Trinidad and Tobago Hockey Board of Control for eight years and Vice-president for two years. In 1946, she was solely responsible for the start of the International Competition for women between Guyana (then British Guiana) and Trinidad and Tobago when she invited the Guyanese to send a National Team to compete against a Trinidad and Tobago National Team without consulting her Executive Committee, only seeking their permission after an affirmative reply was received from the Guyanese.
She played at inner right on that first National Team, and represented the country three times 1946, 1947, and in 1953 as player manager.
It was Florrie who pressed for the inclusion of Jamaica in the Inter colonial Tournaments, which had begun in 1946, a risky undertaking which she made a reality without financial help from the government. In 1963, as President, Florrie was in full support of her then secretary, Irma de Lima, in initiating the move to take women’s hockey into the international arena, and was manager of the first team to take part in the International Women's Hockey Federation Tournament in Baltimore.
Among Florrie’s many proud sporting moments were selection as President of the Ladies’ Hockey Association to read the farewell address to His Excellency the Governor, Sir Hubert Rance, at banquet organised by Trinidad sportsmen on March 4, 1955, to mark Sir Hubert’s departure from the then colony; and as one of two women appointed a member of the Inaugural Stadium Committee in 1956, when the Stadium which exists today was being planned.
In her ‘supposed’ retirement, this indomitable woman continues to play Bridge, and as a member of the Trinidad and Tobago Horticultural Society, runs the Society’s weekly Flower Market, and in this the season of goodwill happily acts as Santa Claus when asked.
“Women and Sport” trophies are awarded annually by the IOC to recognise outstanding achievements in developing and encouraging the participation of women and girls in sport. For the year 2002, five trophies will be awarded to former athletes, coaches, administrators, journalists and organisations on the five continents, and one trophy at world level.
National Olympic Committees and International Olympic Sports Federations were invited to submit nominations by December 15 to the Women & Sport Working Group of the IOC in Lausanne, Switzerland, be it a woman, man or an organisation believed to be deserving of this award for long-lasting and important work done in promoting women’s participation in sport in their country. The awardees will be known by the end of December.
In 2000, the TTOC nominated Lystra Lewis, the grand dame of netball who has within recent times been actively involved in the organisation of Inter-national Competitions for other sport, such as football and hockey, held in Trinidad and Tobago. Lewis subsequently received a certificate acknowledging her nomination, at last December’s TTOC annual awards ceremony.
Kelshall’s contributions to the administration/development of women’s hockey in the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago have been recognised at the highest level in this country. On August 31, 1983, Florrie, an optometrist by profession, was presented with the Humming Bird Medal Silver for Sport (Hockey Player/Administrator) by the President of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago.
And on June 10, 1985, she was inducted in the West Indian Tobacco Sports Hall of Fame for the administration of hockey (1944-1963). Florrie’s dedication to hockey has also resulted in her being made the first Honorary Life Member of the Trinidad Tobago Women’s Hockey Association in 1963; the first female Honorary Life Member of the Trinidad & Tobago (Men’ s) Hockey Federation; and an Honorary Life Member of Ventures Hockey Club of which she has been a member for 62 years from 1940 to the present time, was president for 17 years from 1965 to 1982, and in addition served Ventures as secretary, treasurer and Vice President.
Florrie, who will be 86 years old on January 3, 2002, is still a keen Bridge player, a game she started playing in 1973, and represented Trinidad and Tobago on the Ladies Team in 1979, 1980 and 1981 at the Central American and Caribbean Games.
In 1984 at age 68 Florrie took part in a Veterans Swim Race. And as late as 1997, at age 81 1/2, Florrie won the 2nd prize in the Women on the Move 5K Classic in the 70 and over age group.
And although it was in Field Hockey that Florrie devoted many years to development of the sport through her administrative ability, she has represented Trinidad and Tobago on one occasion in Badminton which she started at school in Chester, England, in the late 1930s, and continued to play from 1940 when she returned to the Caribbean with great success in local competitions. She was a member of the Committee of Management of the St Ann’s Badminton Club and served as Vice President in 1955. At that time there was no national body.
A tennis player also from 1940, Florrie won many tournaments but never represented the country as she was forced to make a choice at that level between representative hockey and tennis.
She served on the St James Tennis Club’s Management Committee for many years. But it was to hockey that Florrie Kelshall gave her all. A game she started while at school in Chester and played for the second eleven at Manchester University, where she also threw the javelin and discus for Victoria Hall. Her career as a hockey administrator started in 1944 as Secretary of the Northern Ladies Hockey League, the body then responsible for running hockey in this country. She continued in the administration of the sport and after ten years as Secretary of Treasurer and Vice President of the Association, became the first female President from 1955 to l 962, during which time she was also treasurer of the Trinidad and Tobago Hockey Board of Control for eight years and Vice-president for two years. In 1946, she was solely responsible for the start of the International Competition for women between Guyana (then British Guiana) and Trinidad and Tobago when she invited the Guyanese to send a National Team to compete against a Trinidad and Tobago National Team without consulting her Executive Committee, only seeking their permission after an affirmative reply was received from the Guyanese.
She played at inner right on that first National Team, and represented the country three times 1946, 1947, and in 1953 as player manager.
It was Florrie who pressed for the inclusion of Jamaica in the Inter colonial Tournaments, which had begun in 1946, a risky undertaking which she made a reality without financial help from the government. In 1963, as President, Florrie was in full support of her then secretary, Irma de Lima, in initiating the move to take women’s hockey into the international arena, and was manager of the first team to take part in the International Women's Hockey Federation Tournament in Baltimore.
Among Florrie’s many proud sporting moments were selection as President of the Ladies’ Hockey Association to read the farewell address to His Excellency the Governor, Sir Hubert Rance, at banquet organised by Trinidad sportsmen on March 4, 1955, to mark Sir Hubert’s departure from the then colony; and as one of two women appointed a member of the Inaugural Stadium Committee in 1956, when the Stadium which exists today was being planned.
In her ‘supposed’ retirement, this indomitable woman continues to play Bridge, and as a member of the Trinidad and Tobago Horticultural Society, runs the Society’s weekly Flower Market, and in this the season of goodwill happily acts as Santa Claus when asked.
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Angela Pidduck, “Florrie, 85, nominated for IOC's 'Women of the Year',” Angela Pidduck's Writings, accessed May 4, 2024, https://angelapidduck.omeka.net/items/show/6.