SSP Bent promises international-style security for Champs

Dr Terrence Bent, senior superintendent of police (SSP) in charge of security for this year’s ISSA/GraceKennedy Boys and Girls’ Athletics Championships (Champs), says the Jamaica Constabulary Force (JCF) will be implementing an international-style security approach for the highly anticipated meet.

The five-day meet is scheduled to take place from March 24–28 at the National Stadium.

Dr Bent said that the primary objective of the JCF over the five days is to ensure that the event remains safe and well-managed for athletes, officials, and spectators.

“The JCF remains the premier law-enforcement organisation in the Caribbean. We have transformed. We have developed our people, our quality, and our technology,” said Dr Bent while speaking at the official launch of the 2026 championships at the National Arena on Wednesday..

He stated that the 2026 staging of the championships presents one of the biggest logistical and security challenges for the police in terms of major event planning.

“The 2026 edition of the ISSA/GraceKennedy Boys and Girls’ Athletics Championships is one of the largest challenges in terms of major event planning,” he said “Saturday will be a big day, and the current disposition is that Champs has been spread over several days to reduce the tension and to increase the marketability of it,” Dr Bent said.

He also noted that the JCF would be collaborating with several key stakeholders to develop a detailed security plan for the championships.

“For that reason, the JCF and its stakeholders, private-security companies, the Office of Disaster Preparedness and Emergency Management (ODPEM), the Jamaica Fire Brigade, and Independence Park Limited have laid out a very comprehensive and well-written plan that will ensure that all the security elements are dealt with,” Dr Bent said.

He shared that the police would also rely on global-security standards used at major sporting events.

“I must say to you that the JCF follows the UL (Underwriters Laboratories) national and international standards for major sporting events. We look at events globally, whether football or athletics, and once it is a sporting event, we learn from the discussions from our UL members and develop a security plan that deals with risks.”

He pointed out that these measures include monitoring the perimeter of the stadium, crowd management, traffic control, and preventing unauthorised access, as well as addressing potential issues such as crowd invasions of the track or restricted areas.

As part of the strategy, Bent highlighted that the JCF would also deploy plainclothes police officers inside the stadium to help maintain order and enhance safety.

“What we have done in collaboration with our critical stakeholders is to continue conducting risk assessments prior to the start of the competition, and after the event, we will also review the different security issues,” Dr Bent said.

“We are going to ensure that persons entering the venue have paid so that the organisers can support the schools that are in need. For that reason, we will definitely have gate-management control, and we will be looking out for prohibited items such as large igloos and other suspected restricted items,” he said.